President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday France would never take part in operations to unblock the Strait of Hormuz, pushing back on comments by U.S. President Donald Trump that Paris was willing to help.
Trump, speaking at a White House event on Monday, said he had spoken to Macron, giving him an '8 out of 10' score on his stance towards getting allies to unblock the Strait of Hormuz, and suggested Macron would join U.S.-backed efforts.
"We are not party to the conflict and therefore France will never take part in operations to open or liberate the Strait of Hormuz in the current context," Macron said at the start of a cabinet meeting to discuss the conflicts in the Middle East.
France has been pushing on with its efforts to put together a coalition to secure the Strait of Hormuz once the security situation stabilises and without a U.S. role, French officials have said.
"We are convinced that once the situation has calmed down—and I deliberately use this term broadly — once the situation has calmed down, that is to say, once the main bombing has ceased, we are ready, along with other nations, to assume responsibility for the escort system," Macron said.
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