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US officials seek to rally support for coalition to secure Strait of Hormuz

By Kevin Liptak

US officials spent much of the weekend working to rally support behind President Donald Trump’s demand that other countries assist in securing the Strait of Hormuz and hope to announce a new coalition in the coming days, according to people familiar with the matter.

Who that coalition consists of, and when it might be announced, remain open questions. Even staunch US allies sound cautious about sending their militaries into the contested waterway while an active war is underway.

Still, US officials said they hope to at least receive preliminary commitments of support for securing the strait, even if countries leave the specifics — such as what ships are deployed and when — to a later date.

Trump himself spoke on Sunday evening with Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer but the call did not result in the immediate announcement of British assets heading toward the strait.

Trump is expected to have additional conversations as the week goes on. He’ll host Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Thursday for her first White House visit since being elected.

But she, too, has remained noncommittal about sending Japanese war ships to the strait.

Administration officials still say they expect the war with Iran to last four to six weeks, meaning at least another two weeks remain. While the US and Israel have found success in wiping out much of Iran’s missile arsenal, its air defenses and its navy, the hardline regime remains in power and continues to demonstrate an ability to threaten its neighbors and disrupt global energy trade.

European officials said one of their fears is that Trump will declare victory in Iran in the coming weeks and leave them to patrol the strait afterward. There was virtually no attempt to gain buy-in from US allies before the war began.

But they also recognize the need to manage the situation carefully, wary of alienating Trump at a moment another conflict – the war in Ukraine – appears on a precipice.