Key insights
- The EU has declined to expand its naval mission to the Strait of Hormuz, despite US calls for increased security. This decision, while maintaining focus on the Red Sea, introduces uncertainty in oil supply routes and could lead to increased shipping costs. The lack of immediate EU support may prompt the US to act unilaterally, potentially escalating tensions in the region and negatively impacting market sentiment.
BRUSSELS, March 16 (Reuters) - European Union foreign ministers showed "no appetite" to expand an EU naval mission in the Middle East to the Strait of Hormuz for the time being, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on Monday.
U.S. President Donald Trump has called on other nations to help police the strait after Iran responded to U.S.-Israeli attacks by using drones, missiles and mines to effectively close the channel for tankers that normally transport a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas.
The EU’s Aspides mission - named after the Greek word for "shields" - was established in 2024 to protect ships from attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebel group in the Red Sea.
"There was in our discussions a clear wish to strengthen this operation, but for the time being, there was no appetite in changing the mandate of the operation," Kallas told reporters after a meeting of the EU foreign ministers in Brussels.
The mission currently has an Italian and a Greek ship under its direct command and can also call upon a French ship and another Italian vessel for support.
"The discussion was that it should be strengthened, because it doesn’t have too many naval assets. It should have more," Kallas said.
"While the Strait of Hormuz is at the center stage, the Red Sea also remains critical."
(Reporting and writing by Lili Bayer and Gianluca Lo Nostro; Editing by Andrew Gray)