US President Donald Trump has warned NATO countries that they face a "very bad future" if they do not support Washington's efforts to open the Strait of Hormuz.
The American leader expressed this position in an interview with the "Financial Times" newspaper.
Trump also noted that his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, which is scheduled for the end of March, may be postponed.
""I think China can also help because China gets 90% of its oil from the Strait," said the US president in connection with the measures he is trying to implement to lift the blockade imposed by Iran. Trump stressed that he would like to know Beijing's position before making his visit.
"We may be delayed," he said of the planned trip.
According to Trump, countries that receive energy through the Strait of Hormuz should help protect the sea route. "It is entirely appropriate that the people who benefit from the strait do their part to make sure nothing bad happens there," the president explained.
Trump spoke to the Financial Times after US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant met with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifen in Paris to discuss the planned summit in Beijing.
Si invited Trump to China when the two leaders met in South Korea in late October and reached a truce in the trade and technology war between Washington and Beijing. The Chinese side has shown no signs of wanting to postpone the visit despite the conflict in Iran, which is a major oil supplier to China, the Financial Times reported.
Berlin will not participate in an international military mission to protect merchant ships in the Strait of Hormuz, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadeful said, quoted by DPA.
"Will we soon become an active party in this conflict? No", the German minister said in response to a journalist from AERD television regarding the extension of the EU's naval mission "Aspides" in the Strait of Hormuz.
Wadeful pointed out that the German government has a very clear position, which has already been presented by Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius. "We will not participate in this conflict", the German diplomat stressed. Vaddeful added that the US and Israel have said that their goal is to destroy Iran's military capacity, especially its missile and nuclear programs.
Germany expects to be informed and when the US and Israel achieve their goals, "then we will be happy to join the negotiations," the German foreign minister added.
According to him, security in the Strait of Hormuz can only be achieved through negotiations.
US President Donald Trump said on his social network "Truth Social" yesterday that many countries will send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open. However, he did not specify which countries.
The Strait of Hormuz is vital for global oil and gas supplies, and its closure has caused a sharp increase in the prices of these raw materials. EU foreign ministers will meet in Brussels on Monday for their first face-to-face meeting since the Iran conflict began.
Vadeful said today that he was skeptical about the potential expansion of the EU's "Aspides" mission in the Strait of Hormuz. He said the mission to help commercial shipping through the Red Sea "is not effective." "And that's why I am very skeptical that expanding "Aspides" in the Strait of Hormuz would guarantee greater "security," he said in an interview with German broadcaster AERD.
The "Aspides" defense mission began in February 2024 with the aim of protecting freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf after Yemeni Houthi rebels launched a series of attacks on vessels in the region at the time. The operation is being carried out along the main sea lines of communication in the Bab el-Mandeb and Hormuz straits, as well as in the international waters of the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman and Persian Gulf.
Iran's relations with the Gulf Arab states will require a "serious review", limiting the influence of external players so that the region can become prosperous, the Islamic Republic's ambassador to Saudi Arabia told Reuters.
When asked if he was concerned that relations would be damaged by war, Ambassador Alireza Enayati said: "We are neighbors and we cannot do without each other. We will need a serious review".
"What the region has witnessed over the past five decades is the result of an exclusionary approach and excessive dependence on external powers," he said in a written response to questions, calling for deeper ties between members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Iran and Iraq.
The Gulf Arab states have been subjected to more than 2,000 missile and drone strikes since the war began on February 28, targeting both US diplomatic missions and military bases as well as critical oil infrastructure, ports, airports, hotels and residential and office buildings.
At the same time, Enayati denied that Iran was responsible for the attacks on Saudi Arabia's oil infrastructure.
"Iran is not responsible for these attacks. "If Iran had carried them out, it would have announced them," Enayati said, but did not specify who was behind the airstrikes.
The Saudi Defense Ministry's statements did not name those responsible for the attacks. Enayati said Iran only attacked American and Israeli targets and interests. The Iranian diplomat added that he personally maintains constant contact with Saudi officials, with relations "developing naturally." in many areas.
He said Tehran is in contact with Riyadh regarding Saudi Arabia's publicly stated position that its land, sea and air will not be "used to attack Iran", without disclosing details.
The diplomat addressed the Gulf states, stating that the war "has been imposed on us and the region".
According to him, in order to resolve the conflict, it is necessary for the US and Israel to stop their attacks and the countries of the region should not be involved. Enayati added that Iran wants international guarantees that it will not be attacked again. "Only then can we focus on building a prosperous region," the Iranian ambassador concluded.
Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar welcomed direct talks with Iran in a published interview with the "Financial Times" as the most effective way to resume shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, Reuters reported.
US President Donald Trump on Friday called on countries to send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open to shipping while Iranian forces respond to US and Israeli attacks on the Islamic Republic.
In a post on his social media account "Truth Social" Trump said he hoped China, France, Japan, South Korea, Britain and others would send ships to help protect the vital strait, through which about a fifth of the world's oil passes.
Jaishankar said he was engaged in talks with Tehran and that "the talks have yielded some results".
Two Indian-flagged LNG carriers carrying about 93,000 tonnes of LNG passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday en route to India.
Jaishankar told the Financial Times that it was "an example of what diplomacy can do". "Of course, from India's perspective, it is better to think, coordinate and find a solution than not to," he told the newspaper.
Jaishankar said there was no "overall agreement" on Indian-flagged ships and that Iran had not received "nothing in return".
Jaishankar responded to a question about whether European countries could replicate India's agreement, saying that each bilateral relationship with Iran "has its own merits", making comparisons difficult. The Indian minister added that he would be happy to share India's approach with EU countries, noting that many of them had held talks with Tehran.