Tokyo, Japan. Japan and Australia said on Monday they were not planning to send navy vessels to the Middle East to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, after U.S. President Donald Trump called on allies to create a coalition to reopen the waterway.
Trump urges coalition amid regional turmoil
With the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran in its third week, Trump said on Sunday that nations relying heavily on oil from the Gulf have a responsibility to protect the strait, through which 20% of the world’s energy transits.
Markets in Asia opened cautiously, with Brent crude rising more than 1% above $104.50 and regional share markets mostly weaker after Trump’s comments.
“I’m demanding that these countries come in and protect their own territory because it is their territory,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on the way from Florida to Washington. “It’s the place from which they get their energy.”
Trump said his administration has already contacted seven countries, but did not identify them. In a weekend social media post, he said he hoped China, France, Japan, South Korea, Britain and others would participate.
Japan cites constitutional constraints
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Japan, constrained by its war-renouncing constitution, has no plan to dispatch naval vessels to escort ships in the Middle East.
“We have not made any decisions whatsoever about dispatching escort ships. We are continuing to examine what Japan can do independently and what can be done within the legal framework,” Takaichi told parliament.
Australia says it has not been asked
Australia said it had not been asked and will not send naval ships to assist in reopening the strait.
“We know how incredibly important that is, but that’s not something that we’ve been asked or that we’re contributing to,” Catherine King, a member of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s cabinet, said in an interview with state broadcaster ABC.
What do you think countries that rely heavily on Gulf oil should do to help protect the Strait of Hormuz?
