UK warship HMS Dragon heads to Middle East for potential Strait of Hormuz mission

PA Media

The Royal Navy is sending a warship to the Middle East where it could join an international mission to safeguard shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

HMS Dragon, a type 45 destroyer, will "pre-position" in the region ahead of its "potential role" in what the Ministry of Defence (MoD) described as a "strictly defensive and independent" mission.

Sir Keir Starmer, who together with French president Emmanuel Macron is championing the mission, has said the shipping mission would only take place once fighting in the region ends.

Iran has been controlling the Strait of Hormuz for months in retaliation for the US and Israeli attacks.

Some 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas uses the crucial waterway, whose blockage has sent prices soaring globally.

A ceasefire has been in place between the US and Iran since April but a lasting solution to the conflict has not yet been found. Both sides this week have accused the other of launching attacks in the strait.

HMS Dragon is one of the Royal Navy's six Type 45 destroyers purpose built for anti-aircraft and anti-missile warfare and is of Britain's most advanced warships.

It will be the first Royal Navy ship sent to the Middle East since the start of the Iran war in late February and follows the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, which transited the Suez Canal earlier this week.

Another British ship, RFA Lyme Bay, is still being kitted out with autonomous mine hunting equipment ahead of a potential deployment.

HMS Dragon has recently been in the eastern Mediterranean as part of the UK's defensive operations there. Its primary role has been to defend British air bases in Cyprus after RAF Akrotiri was hit by an Iranian-made drone in March.

Commenting on the decision, announced on Saturday, to send HMS Dragon to the Middle East, the MoD said the deployment was "part of prudent planning" and meant the warship could contribute immediately if needed as part of a "future defensive mission."

The new Middle East mission "provides the UK Armed Forces with additional options for the defensive multinational Hormuz mission", the MoD said.

Last month, 51 countries met to discuss how to protect commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, with Sir Keir saying afterwards that dozens of them had offered to "contribute assets" to the joint operation with France.

Sir Keir's position on the conflict has been that the UK will not be "dragged" into it. He has previously said the UK would not support a US blockade of Iranian ports, which is still in place.

The MoD added: "Cyprus remains well defended, as we've bolstered the significant defensive capabilities we had already pre-deployed to the region since January."

HMS Dragon had to be docked shortly after arriving at Cyprus after experiencing what the MoD called a "minor technical issue". At the time, the UK government faced accusations of not responding to the conflict in the Middle East quickly enough.