HMS Dragon heads to Middle East as UK considers international Strait of Hormuz operation

Royal Navy warship HMS Dragon is being sent to the Middle East to join an international mission to safeguard shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

The Type 45 destroyer will “pre-position” in the region, ready to join the UK and French-led initiative once hostilities cease between Iran and US-Israeli forces.

A fragile ceasefire remains in place, although attacks on Friday saw US forces hit two Iranian tankers trying to breach the blockade imposed by Donald Trump.

The proposed mission, championed by Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron, would involve a coalition of nations willing to ensure freedom of navigation in the strait, a vital route for global oil and gas supplies.

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A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: “We can confirm that HMS Dragon will deploy to the Middle East to pre-position ahead of any future multinational mission to protect international shipping when conditions allow them to transit the Strait of Hormuz.

“The pre-positioning of HMS Dragon is part of prudent planning that will ensure that the UK is ready, as part of a multinational coalition jointly led by the UK and France, to secure the strait, when conditions allow.”

The decision to move HMS Dragon from the eastern Mediterranean, where it had been defending British bases on Cyprus, will allow the destroyer to contribute immediately should the defensive mission in the strait be launched.

The Government now believes Cyprus has sufficient protection to allow the vessel to confidently head to the Middle East.

Around 40 nations are involved in the multinational plan to escort shipping through the strait when conditions allow.

As well as HMS Dragon, the support ship RFA Lyme Bay is being converted to act as a mothership for mine hunting drones which could be used to help clear the waterway.

The decision to send HMS Dragon was signed off by Defence Secretary John Healey and Chief of the Defence Staff Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton.

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A defence source said: “This move is all about being prepared, should the conditions allow for our coalition to begin its work.

“The UK and France will continue to lead these efforts, turning diplomatic consensus into military options.”

Iranian ports were struck this week after the regime fired on three US destroyers on Thursday night - USS Truxtun, USS Rafael Peralta and USS Mason - which came under fire as they attempted to transit the blockaded oil route.

Mr Trump said drones were “incinerated” in mid air, and missiles were intercepted as small boats attacking US craft “went to the bottom of the sea".

Iran’s Minab Naval Base and military stronghold on Qeshm Island were hit in response, with damage inflicted on the Bandar-e Khamir and Sirik sites.

Despite ongoing provocation, Mr Trump has urged Iran to agree to peace terms, vowing to “knock them out a lot harder and a lot more violently” should they refuse.

The US President dubbed the strikes on Iran as “just a love tap" and maintained the ceasefire was holding strong.

The US is still waiting for a response to a peace proposal that would bring an end to the ongoing war.

A one-page memo from Mr Trump outlined concessions for a permanent peace agreement, that would see the US lift sanctions, free billions in frozen assets, and open a path to uranium enrichment.

The 14-point memo is now being negotiated between senior officials on both sides, including Mr Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.

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