France, Italy, Denmark back naval mission for Hormuz

BRUSSELS: France, Italy, the Netherlands and Denmark support a European-led naval mission to ensure safe shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, three senior EU diplomats said on Tuesday after Britain proposed the idea following Iran's seizure of a tanker.
Britain proposed the idea to senior EU diplomats at a meeting in Brussels, saying it would not involve the European Union, Nato or the US directly, the diplomats said. Spain, Sweden, Poland and Germany also showed interest. The mission to protect vital Middle East oil shipping lanes could be run by a joint Franco-British command, one of the envoys said.
Meanwhile, Iran warned Britain's next PM Boris Johnson on Tuesday that it will "protect" waters of the oil-rich Gulf, amid a standoff between the two countries over the seizure of tankers. "I congratulate my former counterpart, @BorisJohnson on becoming UK PM," Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted. "Iran does not seek confrontation. But we have 1500 miles of Persian Gulf coastline. These are our waters & we will protect them."