Rejected by NATO, most allies to join mission to secure Hormuz: Trump

Washington: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said NATO and most other allies have rejected his calls to help secure the Strait of Hormuz as the war with Iran rages on.

Trump, who has been pressing allies to help safeguard the critical waterway, fumed that the US is not getting support “despite the fact that almost every country strongly agreed with what we are doing, and that Iran cannot” be allowed to secure a nuclear weapon.

Iran’s attacks on Gulf nations and its grip on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil is transported, have sparked increasing concerns of a global energy crisis and are unnerving the world economy.

A handful of ships have crossed through the strait, and Iran has said the vital waterway technically remains open - just not for the United States, Israel and their allies. About 20 vessels have been struck since the war began.

With oil prices rising, Trump said he had demanded that roughly a half-dozen countries send warships to ensure ships can pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

But his appeals brought no immediate commitments, with many sayingthey are hesitant to get involved in a war with no defined exit plan and sceptical that they could do more than the US Navy.