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US, Gulf Arab nations draft new UN resolution on Strait of Hormuz

By Simon Lewis

May 4 (Reuters) - The United States and Gulf Arab nations are drafting a U.N. Security Council resolution designed to condemn Iran for blocking the Strait of Hormuz in response to a U.S.-Israeli bombing campaign, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N.Mike Waltz said on Monday.

Waltz said negotiations will take place this week on the resolution, which comes after permanent Security Council members Russia and China blocked a resolution last month that Washington hoped would galvanize international efforts to restore freedom of navigation of the waterway.

KEY DETAILS

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz leaves the chamber during a Security Council meeting on maritime safety at U.N. headquarters in New York City, U.S., April 27, 2026.  REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

Trump says South Korea should join mission to protect ships near Iran

May 4 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on Monday that South Korea should join U.S. efforts to protect ship movements near Iran, and added that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth would hold a news conference on Tuesday with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine.

(Reporting by Costas Pitas)

FILE PHOTO: South Korean President Lee Jae Myung gestures as he meets with U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders' summit in Gyeongju, South Korea, October 29, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein     TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY/File Photo

UAE's Fujairah says fire breaks out at petroleum complex after Iranian drone attack

May 4 (Reuters) - Authorities in the United Arab Emirates' Fujairah said on Monday that a fire broke out at the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone following what they described as a drone attack originating from Iran.

Civil defence teams were deployed immediately to contain the blaze, Fujairah Media office said in a statement.

There was no immediate comment from Iran.

(Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Muhammad Al Gebaly; Editing by Susan Fenton)

FILE PHOTO: Smoke rises in the Fujairah oil industry zone, caused by debris after interception of a drone by air defenses, according to the Fujairah media office, amid the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran, in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, March 14, 2026. REUTERS/Staff/File Photo

Analysis-Trump's Germany troop cuts show limits of NATO efforts to keep US on board

By Andrew Gray and Lili Bayer

BRUSSELS, May 4 (Reuters) - European officials have been working on ways to convince Donald Trump to keep the United States in NATO despite severe tensions over the Iran war. But his abrupt move to cut U.S. forces in Germany is the latest sign that such efforts have their limits and are far from certain to succeed.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte walks into the White House, as seen through a fence, in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 8, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci

Bessent urges China to step up diplomacy on Iran ahead of Trump-Xi summit

WASHINGTON, May 4 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday urged China to step up its diplomatic efforts to persuade Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping, adding that the subject will be discussed when President Donald Trump meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping next week.

"China, let's see them step up with some diplomacy and get the Iranians to open the strait," Bessent said during a live Fox News Channel interview.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks during a press briefing in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 15, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci/File Photo

Allies jolted on defence as Trump pulls troops from Germany

America's NATO allies put a brave face Monday on a US decision to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany, but warned it was proof Europe needs to step up for its own security, and fast.

US President Donald Trump cast fresh doubts over the future of the alliance as he announced Washington was to scale back its largest troops contingent in Europe, after a spat with Berlin over the Iran war.

But, gathered in Yerevan, Armenia, for a meeting of the European Political Community (EPC), European leaders and Canada's Mark Carney said they were ready to step up.

NATO chief Mark Rutte said Europeans had 'heard the message' of frustration from US President Donald Trump over the Iran war

Most Strait of Hormuz shipping at a standstill despite latest US pledge

By Nerijus Adomaitis

OSLO, May 4 (Reuters) - There were no signs of increased vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, a day after President Donald Trump said the U.S. would begin efforts to free up shipping.

Only one tanker, a sanctioned, handy-sized LPG carrier, along with a few cargo ships and a cable-laying vessel passed into the Gulf of Oman on Monday, MarineTraffic data showed.

Ships and boats in the Strait of Hormuz, Musandam, Oman, May 4, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer

Lebanon's most senior Shi'ite politician says no to negotiations with Israel until war stops

BEIRUT, May 4 (Reuters) - Lebanon's parliament speaker, who is the most senior Shi'ite politician and a close ally of Hezbollah, said on Monday there could be no negotiations with Israel without a halt to the war that has raged on in southern Lebanon in spite of a ceasefire.

Nabih Berri's comments, made as Israeli forces ordered residents out of four more villages in southern Lebanon, underline challenges facing U.S. efforts to forge peace between the states which held rare, face-to-face talks last month.

FILE PHOTO: Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri meets with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (not seen) in Beirut, Lebanon October 18, 2024. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany/File Photo

Iran's Revolutionary Guards unveil new map of Strait of Hormuz under their control, state media says

DUBAI, May 4 (Reuters) - Iran's Revolutionary Guards navy issued a new map of the area of the Strait of Hormuz under its control on Monday, state media reported.

The area starts in the west with a line between the westernmost tip of Iran's Qeshm island to the United Arab Emirates' Umm al Quwain emirate. In the east, the area stops at a line between Iran's Mount Mobarak and the UAE's Emirate of Fujairah.

It was not immediately clear if and to what extenct their claimed area of control has changed.

(Reporting by Dubai Newsroom; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

FILE PHOTO: Ships and boats in the Strait of Hormuz, Musandam, Oman, May 1, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo