After peace talks over the weekend between Tehran and Washington failed to deliver an agreement, President Donald Trump said the United States would blockade ships entering or leaving the strait to ratchet up pressure on Iran to strike a deal to curtail its nuclear program and open the vital waterway to maritime traffic.
But France and the U.K. have signaled their disapproval of Trump’s latest attempt to strong-arm Iran.
Friday’s summit is aimed at “driv[ing] forward the international effort we have built in recent weeks to ensure freedom of navigation,” said a spokesperson for the British prime minister. But it’s unclear how the Franco-British offer will help dial down tensions.
U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran in February triggered a regional conflict in the Middle East and brought navigation in the Strait of Hormuz to a virtual standstill, pushing oil and gas prices up across the globe. The two sides agreed to a two-week ceasefire before talks over the weekend of a wider deal fell apart.