UK will not join US blockade of Strait of Hormuz
Tankers sail in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. PHOTO: REUTERS
The United Kingdom will not participate in a United States blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, according to local media, following US President Donald Trump’s remarks about blockading the critical shipping route.
"We continue to support freedom of navigation and the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, which is urgently needed to support the global economy and the cost of living back home," said a government spokesperson, according to Sky News.
"The Strait of Hormuz must not be subject to tolling," the official added.
BREAKING: The UK will not be involved in a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, Sky News understands.
Earlier today, Donald Trump said the U.S. Navy would be blocking the critical shipping route.
Sky's political correspondent @LucyJMcDaid has the latesthttps://t.co/aJEtGwKcEW pic.twitter.com/Kf9aqrIL90The official noted that London is "urgently working" with France and other partners to build a broad coalition to safeguard freedom of navigation.
Trump had earlier said that the UK was sending minesweepers to help clear the strait.
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Meanwhile, British Health Secretary Wes Streeting told Sky News that the disagreement with Washington over Iran "strained" the UK-US ties, noting Trump has said "outrageous" things.
"Over the course of the last week, President Trump has said some pretty bold - in 'Yes Minister' language - incendiary, provocative, outrageous things on social media," Streeting told, referring to a British sitcom which satirises politics and government.
The health secretary added that he is "not sure it's ever clear" what Trump means when he posts on social media.
"I think we've all come to learn that you judge President Trump through what he does, not just what he says," said Streeting.
He defended the government's decision not to join the Iran war, saying it is "not a war of our choosing".
"The difference of agreement with Iran has undoubtedly strained things with the Trump administration," he said, but noted that on so many other things, the two countries' interests are intertwined.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has stressed the Iran war is "not our war" and that the UK will not be drawn into it when Trump announced he is considering pulling the US out of NATO over the lack of support from allies during the Iran war.
More than 3,300 people have been killed in US-Israeli airstrikes on Iran since February 28. Tehran launched retaliatory strikes on Israel, Iraq, Jordan, and Gulf countries hosting US military assets before a two-week ceasefire was announced earlier this week.
Iranian and US delegations concluded face-to-face talks in Islamabad early on Sunday, without reaching an agreement.