EU offers 'primary role' in clearing Hormuz mines

BRUSSELS: The European Union has proposed that the bloc's ​Aspides naval mission take 'the primary role' ​in clearing mines in the Strait of Hormuz 'when conditions allow' as part of a Franco-British-led initiative, according to a document seen by reporters. The European External Action Service wrote in a note dated May 26 and sent to member states that 'the situation requires the Union to provide ⁠a meaningful contribution' to a coalition led by France and Britain 'to be ⁠materialised once conditions allow and separated from the belligerents'. Changing the Aspides mission's mandate would require unanimity, and it remains unclear if the EU’s 27 member countries would back such a change. The mission was established in 2024 ​to protect ships from ⁠attacks by Yemen’s Ansar Allah group in the Red Sea.
Around a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supplies pass through the Strait of ​Hormuz, a key waterway that effectively closed after the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has 'immense shared consequences for the region and ​Europe, with ⁠Iran selectively allowing passage,' the EU's diplomatic arm wrote in its note. France and Britain have taken the lead in putting together a coalition of countries that ​could help ensure safe transit through the Strait once the ⁠situation there ​stabilises or the conflict is resolved. It is unclear if Iran has placed mines in the waterway.
The EU's diplomatic service said that a European contribution would serve 'to showcase EU-wide ownership and responsibility in addressing a situation affecting all Member States' ​and 'vis-a-vis Nato Allies'. An Aspides role would also 'allow all Member ​States to financially support, via the Operation’s common costs, those willing and able to contribute,' it wrote. — Reuters