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An Iranian threat to the Strait of Hormuz is likely to remain even after de-escalation of the Iran war, a senior French navy official has told The National.
"There will always be a remaining threat,” said Vice-Admiral Emmanuel Slaars, commander of naval operations in the French navy and a former operational commander of a pan-European naval mission in the Strait of Hormuz. "The question is: how strong will that threat be?”
Speaking on the sideline of the Paris Defence and Strategy Forum, Adm Slaars said that the risk of an Iranian escalation on the Strait of Hormuz was "almost tangible” during his past deployment as operational commander of a pan-European naval operation that defended ships from IRGC attacks. The passageway is about 30km wide at its narrowest point.
"There is no surprise in the way that they [Iran] are able to engage the assets they are currently engaging,” Adm Slaars said, who headed the Agenor mission from 2022 to 2024 alongside eight European countries including non-EU Norway.
He declined to give an estimate as to how long the present tensions could continue, but said that France would remain committed to defending its allies in the region. He added that joint European operations in the Red Sea should be a source of inspiration of future defensive naval operations in the Strait of Hormuz.
'Remaining threat'
"With the support of our partners in the region of course, at a moment or another, there will be a need for that kind of commitment to make sure we are able to deal with the remaining threat,” he said.
In retaliation to US and Israeli attack, Tehran has brought the seaway to a near-halt, pushing up oil prices and causing fears of shortages in products like fertilisers and helium.
US President Donald Trump threatened to bomb Iran's energy infrastructure if it did not re-open Hormuz before postponing that action on Monday for five days, saying that he had engaged in diplomatic talks with Iran.
Some countries, including Iran and China, have negotiated the safe passage of their ships, but Adm Slaars called on a more co-operative approach among states. "The Strait of Hormuz is an international strait and it has to be free for those who effectively want to use it,” he said. "It goes within international law.”
Last week, more than 30 states, including the UAE and France, signed a joint statement condemning Iran's de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz. French President Emmanuel Macron has pushed for talks to find a diplomatic solution to re-open the strait but only once fighting in the region has died down.
"The aim is to embed those effectively ready to commit to re-establish more secure navigation into the Strait of Hormuz with the support of our GCC partners,” Adm Slaars said, pointing at France's "reliable, reactive and credible” military operations to defend its Gulf allies from Iranian attacks.
"We reacted effectively in an efficient manner and extremely quickly to be at the level of the engagement of France,” he said. France was among a handful of European states that intervened to defend Gulf states from Iranian attacks. Paris sent Rafale jets and air defence systems to the UAE to fend off Iranian drones and missiles.
France also hopes to collaborate with Gulf states pushing forward UN Security Council Resolution 2718 sponsored by Bahrain that condemns Iranian attacks on the strait on and ships using it.
Speaking at the defence forum, Bahrain's Ambassador to France, Essam al-Jassim, called for a strong response to Iranian behaviour. "External protection has clear limits. International coalitions help secure sea lanes and stabilise markets, but their response remains largely reactive," he said at the Paris defence forum. "They do not address, for example, escalating state-backed attacks, and without doing so, disruptions will persist."
UN Security Council members started negotiations on Monday on a draft resolution circulated by Bahrain that could authorise the use of force to protect shipping in the strait. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told the French Parliament Tuesday that language could be difficult to adopt. Paris has circulated a more conciliatory alternative text. Diplomats have said talks were under way to assess whether the two drafts could be reconciled.
