On Monday 13 April, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, condemned the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
“The ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz is greatly damaging, and the restoration of the freedom of navigation is of paramount importance for us”, she stressed at the end of a Security Council meeting held 44 days after the start of the war in the Middle East.
The President felt that Iranian actions hampering shipping in the Strait should be part of any agreement between Iran and the United States, as should the concerns raised by Iran’s nuclear and ballistic programmes. “Negotiations have been stalled, and we have to see how things go on now”, she said, welcoming the ceasefire agreed on 8 April, which is due to expire on 22 April.
In a speech to the United Nations Security Council in New York, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, explained that the EU would continue to reject any agreement that would limit the freedom and security of passage through the straits, in accordance with international law.
She explained that the situation in the Strait was “the clearest call yet for a strong international coalition on maritime security”. “There are many initiatives on the table, but the objectives are simple: safe passage for all shipments via this route”, she said.
Faced with the failure of negotiations, on Monday the United States was due to begin imposing a blockade on ships “entering or leaving Iranian ports and coastal areas”, while Iran is still blocking the passage of ships through the Strait.
France, for its part, announced that it and the United Kingdom would shortly be organising a conference of countries prepared to contribute to a “peaceful mission to restore freedom of navigation” in the Strait, once “the situation permits”. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)