European governments are considering sending a naval task force to protect commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which is vital to Europe’s economy. The effort is being discussed ahead of the G7 summit in Evian, where leaders are seeking international legitimacy for the mission. French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that France’s aircraft carrier could be sent to the area “within days.”
The plan follows a week in which European states avoided a clear alignment with the United States and Israel in the war. Any deployment would need approval from both Washington and Tehran, and also depends on a broader agreement ending the fighting. The biggest unanswered question is when traffic through Hormuz will actually resume. Europe fears that even if a Friday cease-fire deal includes a 60-day truce and the prospect of longer-term peace, oil, gas and other cargo flows may take weeks or months to return to normal. By contrast, U.S. President Donald Trump said the route could reopen “within days” after a deal, and claimed it is already “half open.”
The European initiative is meant to reduce the war’s economic damage by restoring normal shipping as fast as possible. Energy prices have already pushed inflation higher across the continent, and officials fear further knock-on price rises. Before the war began in February, about one-fifth of global oil and gas traffic passed through Hormuz, and although only about 10% of Europe’s energy imports come from the Gulf, the disruption has forced European governments to spend tens of billions of euros extra on energy purchases or subsidies.
According to Kpler, at least 300 ships, half of them oil tankers, are still waiting to leave the Persian Gulf, and a similar number are waiting to enter and load cargo. If the cease-fire holds and no further incidents occur, Kpler estimates traffic through the strait will still be only about 40% of its prewar level a month from now, compared with roughly 100 ships a day before the conflict. A MOL executive told the Financial Times that shipping companies and insurers will be cautious and will need guarantees of safe passage.
Britain, France, Italy and Germany have said they are ready to send minesweepers and protect merchant traffic with escorted convoys using their technology. The leaders issued a statement on Monday offering to create a “completely independent defensive task force” to clear mines and secure commercial shipping. Macron said France’s Charles de Gaulle carrier strike group is already in the region and that a mission could begin in two or three days if the security situation stabilizes, while Germany is moving more slowly and wants first to confirm the fighting has fully ended, secure a legal international basis, and then seek parliamentary approval. Trump, who mocked Europe’s earlier caution, said the U.S. would not need much help but would welcome one or two additional foreign ships. He also said the European effort could help appease him after what he viewed as Europe’s cold shoulder at the start of the war.
