FRENCH president Emmanuel Macron has said France and its allies are preparing a ‘purely defensive’ mission to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and facilitate the passage of tens of millions of barrels of oil.
“We are in the process of setting up a purely defensive, purely escort mission, which must be prepared together with both European and non-European states,” Macron said following a meeting with the Cypriot president Nikos Christodoulides and Greek prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Cyprus on Monday.
The move comes as Europe looms on the brink of the ‘worst energy crisis since the 1970s’ as the Iran war drives the price of oil to its highest level in years.
Brent crude, the international benchmark for oil prices, spiked by nearly 29 per cent to nearly $120 (€103) during early market trading on Monday – a peak not seen since 2022 when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine rattled global markets.
The surge came after Iran effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz, a vital maritime shipping route through which around 20 per cent of the world’s oil and liquified natural gas passes.
Key oil producers in the Gulf, including Kuwait, Bahrain and the UAE, have also announced that they will cut production after Iranian drone strikes damaged several oil refineries across the Middle East.
It is unclear whether Spain will be involved in the operation to reopen the Strait.
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