Numerous heads of state and government welcomed a proposed peace agreement between the United States and Iran.
Germany, France, the United Kingdom, and Italy raised the prospect of lifting sanctions against Iran, emphasizing the urgency of reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
In a joint statement, the four countries said they were "committed to playing our part [...] — including through a strictly defensive and independent mission to reassure commercial shipping and conduct mine clearance operations." A danger to merchant ships
But even if the Strait of Hormuz is reopened to shipping, the Persian Gulf and the surrounding region will remain a danger zone for merchant ships. In early April, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard said Tehran had deployed mines in the Strait.
"We aren't even certain that there are mines [in the Strait of Hormuz]," said Johannes Peters, and expert on undersea warfare at the Kiel University's Institute for Security Policy. "But the underlying threat is enough [to deter passage]. For now, nobody in the war zone can actually go and check."Iran's sudden Hormuz reversal: What it signals nowTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
