UK will not join Trump's blockade of Iran's ports in the Strait of Hormuz

UK will not join Trump's blockade of Iran's ports in the Strait of Hormuz16 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleHarry SekulichAFP via Getty ImagesPrime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will not send British forces to enforce US blockade of Iranian ports.The UK will not be involved in enforcing the US military blockade of Iran, the BBC understands.British naval ships and soldiers will not be used to block Iranian ports, while UK minesweepers and anti-drone capabilities will continue operating in the region.A spokesperson for the UK government said: "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." The US announced the blockade after talks with Iran failed to secure a lasting peace deal to end hostilities in the Middle East, as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer urged "de-escalation" in the region.After US and Iran negotiators met in Pakistan's capital Islamabad, President Donald Trump said the US would start "BLOCKADING any and all Ships trying to enter, or leave, the Strait of Hormuz".The US Central Command (Centcom) later confirmed its forces would enforce the blockade "impartially" on vessels leaving and entering Iranian ports, including those located in the Arabian Gulf and Gulf of Oman.Centcom added that US forces would not impede the freedom of vessels transiting to and from non-Iranian ports, and that additional information would be provided to commercial mariners via a formal notice before the blockade starts.Trump told Fox News that other countries would be involved in blockading the strait, but did not say which ones. He added that Nato offered to help "clean out" the strait, adding that it would be free to use again "in not too long a distance".Trump said the US would bring in minesweepers, and that the UK - a member of Nato - would too."I understand th...