France and the United Kingdom have convened a summit of roughly 30 to 40 countries to advance plans for a multinational force to secure the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway connecting the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea through which around a fifth of the world's oil normally flows. The talks, held at the Élysée presidential palace in Paris, were chaired by French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni also attending in person. The United States, however, is notably absent from the discussions.

The initiative has been formally named the Strait of Hormuz Maritime Freedom of Navigation Initiative. It is described as a strictly defensive mission intended to restore free passage through the waterway once a lasting ceasefire is in place in the ongoing US-Israel war on Iran, which began on February 28. Iran imposed a blockade on the strait shortly after the conflict started, and Washington subsequently compounded the disruption with its own blockade on Iranian ports. Before any deployment can proceed, a French presidential official said allies would require both an Iranian commitment not to fire on passing ships and a US commitment not to obstruct vessels entering or leaving the strait.

The human and economic toll of the closure is mounting. European leaders have warned of rising inflation, food shortages, and potential flight cancellations as jet fuel supplies run low. More than 20,000 seafarers remain stranded aboard hundreds of vessels caught in the blockade.