BY OUR FOREIGN STAFF
FRENCH President Emmanuel Macron has stuck the boot into the US, branding Donald Trump’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz a “mistake.”
In a stinging rebuke from Gdansk, Poland, the French leader warned that the world is paying the price for a diplomatic disaster that has seen Iran slam the gates shut on the world’s most important oil route—again.
Macron claimed the Iranian authorities were ready to play ball until the US decided to keep a “targeted blockade” on any ships linked to Tehran.
“It is likely that, following the American decision to maintain a targeted blockade… the Iranian authorities changed their initial position,” Macron told reporters.
“I believe this is a mistake on both sides.”
OIL CHAOS
The Strait of Hormuz is the world’s biggest energy windpipe, with 25% of the globe’s oil squeezed through the narrow gap.
Iran had briefly signaled it would reopen the waters following a ceasefire in Lebanon.
But after President Trump vowed to keep the US Navy’s “stranglehold” on Iranian vessels, Tehran did a dramatic U-turn, ordering its warships to block all traffic.
Macron’s blast comes as global markets reel from the “open, shut, open, shut” chaos that has sent oil prices screaming toward record highs.
The crisis erupted in February following the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader. Since then, the region has been a powderkeg of sea mines and missile strikes.
While Trump insists the blockade is necessary to bring Iran to its knees, Macron is calling for a return to “calm” and diplomacy.
The French President added: “Everything must be settled via diplomacy. Everyone must return to calm.”
But with Tehran digging in its heels and the US Navy standing firm, the “Mistake in the Middle East” looks set to keep British petrol prices soaring.
The crisis began after US and Israeli air strikes targeted Iran and killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Iran retaliated by mining the Strait.
The Tolls: In March, Iran briefly “reopened” the waterway but demanded “tolls” of up to $2 million per ship.
The Ceasefire: On April 17, a truce in Lebanon led Iran to announce the Strait was “completely open.”
The U-Turn: President Trump clarified that the US blockade on Iranian ports would remain. In response, Iran officially closed the Strait again on April 18, leading to the current standoff and Macron’s intervention.
