Free travel again from Friday? Stranded tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. (Tuesday, June 16).Image: keystone
analysis
Now that the peace deal with Iran is in place, the Europeans are ready to send their warships into the Strait of Hormuz. But the offer of help probably comes too late for the US President.
June 16, 2026, 8:13 p.mJune 16, 2026, 8:13 p.m
Remo Hess, Brussels / ch media
Europeans stand ready to play their part in reopening the Strait of Hormuz. France, Great Britain, Italy and Germany offered on Monday to send an “exclusively defensive” military mission. The first ships could be on site “in a few days” to clear the trade route of mines and secure free shipping, said French President Emmanuel Macron at the G7 summit in Evian. The French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle and its accompanying train have been in the region for weeks. Italian minesweepers are waiting off East Africa and a German minesweeper and the associated logistics ship in the eastern Mediterranean.
However, it is unclear whether US President Donald Trump will accept the offer of help. His first reaction was cautious: “I don’t think we need a lot of help,” said Trump. This is because the road is actually already passable. In fact, it is uncertain to what extent the Iranians have mined the trade route.
Trump probably doesn’t want any more help.Image: keystone
But the fact that Trump is still offended because the Europeans did not support him in his attacks on the mullahs may also play a role. At the time he called them “cowards”. It’s possible that your offer of help now comes too late.
It is clear that the Iranians are against a European presence. They consider a foreign military mission to be “unacceptable”. Instead, Tehran claims that it will be able to retain sovereignty over the waterway and even charge transit fees even after the agreement is signed on Friday. Something that both the Americans and the Europeans clearly reject.
Easing sanctions: Don’t rush it
The Europeans are directly affected by the second major issue of the peace deal: the easing of sanctions against Iran. The European capitals have signaled that they are considering reductions. But for that to happen, the Iranians would really have to stick to the agreement and give up their pursuit of the atomic bomb. As long as no concrete actions are seen that confirm this, dismantling the sanctions regime would be out of the question, said EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
People in Europe will be happy about a third impact of the agreement: the possible reintroduction of American oil sanctions against Russia. US President Donald Trump temporarily suspended this because the Hormuz blockade caused a shortage of oil on the world market. Since the Iran problem has now been solved, oil sanctions against Moscow could be reintroduced “soon,” Trump said in response to a question on Tuesday. (schweiztoday.ch)