CAIRO — Despite President Trump’s appeal to several nations to send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz “open and safe” as oil prices soar during the Iran war, no country stepped forward with a commitment Sunday.
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright told NBC he has been “in dialogue” with some of the countries, without naming them, and said he expected China “will be a constructive partner” in reopening the strait through which one-fifth of global oil exports normally pass.
Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, told NBC that Tehran has been “approached by a number of countries” seeking safe passage for their vessels, “and this is up to our military to decide.” He said a group of vessels from “different countries” had been allowed to pass, without providing details.
Iran has said the strait is open to all except the United States and its allies.
“We don’t see any reason why we should talk with Americans” about finding a way to end the war, Araghchi added, noting that Israel and the U.S. started the fighting with coordinated attacks on Feb. 28 during indirect U.S.-Iran talks. The talks focused on Iran’s nuclear program, and Araghchi said Tehran had “no plan to recover” enriched uranium that is under rubble following U.S. and Israeli attacks last year.
Countries cautious on Trump’s call
Trump on Saturday had appealed to China, France, Japan, South Korea, Britain and others to send warships to help protect shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
“We are intensively looking with our allies at what can be done, because it’s so important that we get the strait reopened,” U.K. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband told Sky News, adding that ending the war is the “best and surest” way to do it.
South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said that it “takes note” of Trump’s call and that it “will closely coordinate and carefully review” the situation with the U.S.
Expectations are also high that Trump could ask Japan to send warships when Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi meets him Thursday at the White House.
There was no immediate response from China.
France previously said it is working with other countries — President Emmanuel Macron mentioned partners in Europe, India and other Asian countries — on a possible international mission to escort ships through the strait. But he has stressed it would have to be as “the circumstances permit,” when fighting has subsided.
Meanwhile, emergency stocks of oil “will soon start flowing to global markets,” the International Energy Agency said Sunday, describing the collective action to lower prices “by far the largest ever.”
It updated last week’s announcement of its plan to release 400 million barrels to nearly 412 million. Member countries in Asia plan to release stocks “immediately,” it said, and reserves from Europe and the Americas will be released “from the end of March.”
More missile and drone attacks are reported
Gulf Arab states reported new missile and drone attacks a day after Iran called for the evacuation of three major ports in the United Arab Emirates — the first time it has threatened a neighboring country’s non-U.S. assets. Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the UAE told residents they were working to intercept projectiles.
Iran has accused the U.S. of launching Friday’s strikes on Kharg Island, home to Iran’s primary oil terminal, from the UAE, without providing evidence.
U.S. Central Command said it had no response to Iran’s claim, and Anwar Gargash, a diplomatic advisor to the UAE president, rejected it. The UAE and other gulf countries that host U.S. bases have denied allowing their land or airspace to be used for military operations against Iran.
Iran’s joint military command has threatened to attack the region’s U.S.-linked “oil, economic and energy infrastructures” if the Islamic Republic’s oil infrastructure is hit.
Iran has fired hundreds of missiles and drones at the UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman during the war, causing significant damage and rattling economies even as most projectiles are intercepted. Tehran says it targets U.S. assets, even as Iranian strikes are reported at civilian sites such as airports and oil fields.
War’s toll mounts across the region
Since the war started, Iranian strikes have killed at least a dozen civilians in gulf countries, most of them migrant workers.
In Iran, the International Committee for the Red Cross said more than 1,300 people have been killed. Iran’s Health Ministry said 223 women and 202 children are among the dead, according to Mizan, the judiciary’s official news agency.
In Israel, 12 people have been killed by Iranian missile fire and more have been injured, including three Sunday. At least 13 U.S. military members have been killed, six of them in a plane crash in Iraq last week.
At least 820 people have been killed in Lebanon, according to its Health Ministry, since Iran-backed Hezbollah started hitting Israel and Israel responded with strikes and sent additional troops into southern Lebanon.
Rain deepens misery in Lebanon
In just 10 days, more than 800,000 people — nearly 1 out of every 7 residents of Lebanon — have been displaced, just over a year since the last conflict uprooted over a million Lebanese from their homes.
In Beirut, displaced families fixed tents battered by wind and rain. Fadi Younes, who fled his home in the southern suburbs, told the Associated Press that his mattresses and blankets were soaked.
“We don’t know where this will end,” he said.
In the southern suburb of Haret Hreik, there was scarcely a person in sight when crews arrived to clear the streets of rubble.
“The important thing is that the roads remain open for hospitals and for people,” excavator driver Hachem Fadlallah said.
More Iranian missile strikes hit Israel
Israel said it continued to strike Iran. And Iran fired missiles toward Israel, sending residents rushing to shelters as sirens sounded.
Several strikes hit central Israel and the Tel Aviv area, where they caused damage at 23 sites and sparked a small fire. Magen David Adom, Israel’s rescue service, released video showing a large crater in a street and shrapnel damage to an apartment building.
Multi-site impacts have become a hallmark of the war, as Israel’s military says Iran is firing cluster bombs that can evade some air defenses and scatter submunitions across multiple locations.
Metz, Magdy and Frankel write for the Associated Press and reported from Ramallah, West Bank; Cairo and Jerusalem, respectively. AP journalists Sally Abou AlJoud and Fadi Tawil in Beirut, John Leicester in Paris and Tia Goldenberg in Washington contributed to this report.
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