March 15 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump is working to assemble a coalition of countries to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and is hoping to announce it later this week, Axios reported on Sunday citing four sources.
(Reporting by Shivani Tanna in Bengaluru; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)
TOKYO, March 16 (Reuters) - Japan does not currently plan to dispatch naval vessels to escort ships in the Middle East, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Monday, after U.S. President Donald Trump called on allies to help escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz.
"We have not made any decisions whatsoever about dispatching escort ships. We are continuing to examine what Japan can do independently and what can be done within the legal framework," Takaichi told parliament.
Japan said Monday it was not currently thinking about ordering maritime security operations, after US President Donald Trump called for other countries to send warships to help protect the Strait of Hormuz.
"In the current Iran situation, we are not at the moment considering issuing a maritime security operation," Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi told parliament.
Trump called for reinforcements on Saturday from countries including Japan after earlier vowing that the US Navy would "very soon" begin escorting tankers through the vital shipping lane for oil in the Middle East.
Hidden behind a tall hedgerow in the English countryside, Charlie Cumming stood at the fence of an air force base, camera raised towards a US B-1 Lancer bomber parked nearby.
He was one of hundreds of curious onlookers who flocked to the airfield at RAF Fairford in the southwestern county of Gloucestershire since US aircraft began arriving on March 6, days after the start of the US-Israeli war with Iran.
"I've come just for pictures for my Instagram, really," said the 17-year-old. "It's a bit concerning they're here, but I still think they're really cool to see."
Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy was back in court Monday for an appeal trial on charges he sought Libyan financing for his 2007 election, in a case that last year saw him become France's first modern-day head of state to go to prison.
A lower court in September found the right-wing politician -- who was president from 2007 to 2012 -- guilty of seeking to acquire funding from Muammar Gaddafi's Libya for the campaign that saw him elected and sentenced him to five years behind bars.
March 16 (Reuters) - The Dubai Media Office said on Monday that authorities were dealing with a fire resulting from a drone attack in the vicinity of the Dubai International Airport, adding that no injuries were reported.
Dubai authorities said that the drone attack hit a fuel tank and the civil defence teams were working to bring the fire under control.
By Jarrett Renshaw and Bianca Flowers
March 15 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the United States could soon reach a deal with Cuba or take other action, signaling that developments in the long-strained relationship may come quickly.
"Cuba also wants to make a deal, and I think we will pretty soon either make a deal or do whatever we have to do," Trump said to reporters on Air Force One. "We're talking to Cuba, but we're going to do Iran before Cuba."
March 15 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump has warned that NATO faces a “very bad” future if U.S. allies fail to assist in opening up the Strait of Hormuz, in an interview with the Financial Times published on Sunday.
Trump told the FT he could also delay his summit with China’s President Xi Jinping later this month as he presses Beijing to help unblock the crucial waterway.
"I think China should help too because China gets 90% of its oil from the Straits," Trump told the newspaper, adding he would prefer to know Beijing’s position before the planned visit.
March 15 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday he had asked Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to put an immediate end to attacks against countries in the Middle East whether directly or through proxies, including in Lebanon and Iraq.
"I reminded him that France is acting within a strictly defensive framework aimed at protecting its interests, its regional partners, and freedom of navigation, and that it is unacceptable for our country to be targeted," Macron said in a post on X.
By Andrew Gray and Lili Bayer
BRUSSELS, March 15 (Reuters) - European Union foreign ministers will discuss on Monday bolstering a small naval mission in the Middle East but are not expected to decide on extending its role to the choked-off Strait of Hormuz, diplomats and officials say.
The EU’s Aspides mission was established in 2024 to protect ships from attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebel group in the Red Sea. It currently has an Italian and a Greek ship under its direct command and can also call upon a French ship and another Italian vessel for support.
