How many countries have pushed back on Trump’s Hormuz ship demand?

Five countries have so far rejected, resisted or declined to commit to US President Donald Trump’s demand that allies send ships to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, highlighting growing international caution over a proposed naval effort in one of the world’s most sensitive oil corridors. Al Jazeera reported a muted global response to Washington’s appeal, while Reuters said allies had reacted cautiously rather than rallying behind the plan. “I’m demanding that these countries come in and protect their own territory because it is their territory,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. Trump said his administration had contacted seven countries but did not identify them. In a weekend social media post, he said he hoped China, France, Japan, South Korea, Britain and others would participate. The clearest pushback came from Japan and Australia. Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Tokyo had no current plans to dispatch naval escort missions, stressing legal and constitutional limits on overseas deployments. Read: Indian foreign minister hails talks with Iran to open Strait of Hormuz, FT reports “We have not made any decisions whatsoever about dispatching escort ships. We are continuing to examine what Japan can do independently and what can be done within the legal framework,” Takaichi told parliament. Australia was more direct. Cabinet minister Catherine King said Canberra would not send ships and had not been formally asked to do so. “We know how incredibly important that is, but that's not something that we've been asked or that we're contributing to,” she told state broadcaster ABC. In Europe, the response was less explicit but still stopped short of backing Washington’s proposal. Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul expressed scepticism about expanding the EU’s Aspides naval mission into the Strait of Hormuz, saying there was little evidence such a move would improve security. “Will we soon be an active part of this conflict? No,” he told ARD Television, adding that Berlin did not want to become a direct party to the war. Britain and France have also stopped short of supporting the immediate deployment Trump appeared to seek. Reuters reported that Britain remained in discussions with allies without committing vessels, while France backed only the idea of a future defensive escort arrangement rather than entering the crisis immediately. Trump increased pressure on European allies, warning that NATO faced a “very bad” future if members failed to assist Washington. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer discussed reopening the Strait with Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, a Downing Street spokeswoman said, while South Korea said it would carefully review the request. Read more: Pete Hegseth says Tuesday 'most intense day' of US attacks on Iran Trump also urged China to participate, saying, “China should help because China gets 90% of its oil from the Straits.” He added that he might delay a planned visit if Beijing did not offer support. China’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. That leaves five of the seven countries Trump apparently approached – Japan, Australia, Germany, Britain and France – having directly or indirectly rejected, resisted or withheld support for the proposal. Global energy supply concerns The disruption to energy markets caused by the Iran war is an “abject lesson” in the risks of fossil fuel dependence, according to Simon Stiell, executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). “Fossil fuel dependency is ripping away national security and sovereignty, and replacing it with subservience and rising costs,” Stiell was set to tell EU officials and ministers at an event in Brussels on Monday. Global air travel remains heavily disrupted as the conflict has closed or restricted major Middle Eastern hubs including Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi, forcing airlines to cancel thousands of flights and leaving tens of thousands of passengers stranded. Jet fuel supplies are also becoming a concern. Authorities in Vietnam warned the aviation sector to prepare for potential flight reductions from April after China and Thailand halted jet fuel exports due to the conflict. Although some Iranian vessels and a limited number of foreign ships have crossed the Strait, the passage has effectively been closed to most tanker traffic since the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28, sharply raising risks to global energy supplies.

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