Japan and Australia on Monday said they were not planning to send navy vessels to the Middle East to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, after US President Donald Trump called on allies to create a coalition to reopen the vital waterway.

With the US-Israeli war on Iran creating turmoil across the Middle East and shaking up global energy markets ⁠in its third week, Trump on Sunday insisted that nations relying heavily on oil from the Gulf had a responsibility to protect the strait through which 20 percent of the world's energy transits.

He said his administration had already contacted seven countries, but did not identify them.

In a weekend social media post he expressed hope that China, France, Japan, South Korea, Britain and others would participate.

In Tokyo, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Japan, constrained by its war-renouncing constitution, had no plans to dispatch naval vessels to escort ships in the Middle East.

"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, another key Indo-Pacific ⁠US ally, said it had not been asked and would not send naval ships to assist in reopening the strait either.

"We know how incredibly important that is, ⁠but that's not something that we've been asked or ⁠that we're contributing to," Catherine King, a member of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's cabinet, said in an interview with state broadcaster ABC.

Trump also ratcheted up pressure on European allies to help protect the strait, warning that Nato faces a “very bad” future if its members fail to come to Washington’s aid.

European Union foreign ministers will discuss on Monday bolstering a small naval mission in the Middle East, but are not expected to decide on extending its role to the choked-off Strait ⁠of Hormuz, diplomats and officials said.

Global air travel remains severely disrupted due to the Iran war which has closed or restricted key Middle Eastern hubs including Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi, forcing airlines to cancel thousands of flights and stranding tens of thousands of passengers.

Supplies of jet fuel are also becoming a concern, with authorities in Vietnam warning the country's aviation industry to prepare for potential flight reductions from April after China and Thailand halted exports of jet fuel due to the Iran war.

Despite repeated claims by US authorities to have destroyed Iran's military capabilities, drone attacks continued to threaten Gulf states on Monday.

Dubai authorities said they had contained a fire, but temporarily suspended flights at the airport after a drone attack hit a fuel tank.

Saudi Arabia intercepted 34 drones in its eastern region in one hour, state media said.

No injuries were reported in either incident. (Reuters/Xinhua)


Edited by Tony Sabine