Paris, April 18 (IANS) French President Emmanuel Macron said that Iran’s announcement of reopening the Strait of Hormuz goes in the right direction.
Macron made the remarks in a joint declaration following a conference co-hosted by France and Britain in Paris on Friday (local time), which brought together 49 countries to discuss securing freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attended the meeting, while officials from across Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East joined by video conference, reports Xinhua news agency.
Macron welcomed the ceasefire in Iran and Lebanon, describing it as a positive development. However, he stressed that it’s necessary to remain vigilant.
“We all oppose any restriction, any agreement regime that would effectively amount to an attempt to privatise the strait, and obviously any toll system,” he said.
He also announced that a neutral, independent mission would be set up to ensure the openness of the Strait of Hormuz, noting that a planning meeting was scheduled for the following week in London.
Starmer, for his part, expressed the hope that talks would resume and a lasting agreement would be reached.
He said France and Britain will lead a multinational mission to safeguard shipping as soon as conditions allow, noting that the mission will be strictly defensive and intended to reassure shipping and support mine-clearing operations.
Around a dozen countries were ready to contribute assets to the defensive mission, Starmer noted.
Meloni said that it was necessary to ensure the absence of mines and guarantee the safety of vessels transiting through the strait in order to reassure the maritime shipping sector, adding that Italy stood ready to deploy its naval units in a strictly defensive posture.
Germany “will participate in the ongoing military planning discussions” and “we would welcome, if possible, participation from the United States,” Merz said.
–IANS
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