Belgium Weighs Minehunter Deployment to Strait of Hormuz
Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot, speaking to local radio as cited by Belga news agency, said Brussels was open to participating in a multinational effort to restore safe passage through the strategically vital waterway. He noted that French President Emmanuel Macron had recently raised the matter directly with Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever, and that Belgium could contribute a "proportionate share" within a 32-nation coalition framework.
Prevot was careful, however, to draw a firm political line between peacekeeping and endorsement. He stressed that any Belgian participation must not be interpreted as tacit approval of the US-Israeli military intervention in Iran, which he said was launched "outside international law." Urging caution over premature triumphalism, he warned that "one should not declare victory too soon" in response to Washington's assertions that a regime change had been achieved in Tehran.
Defense Minister Theo Francken offered a more direct confirmation of Belgium's intentions, posting on US social media company X that the country would formally join the effort.
"Belgium will join the coalition of the willing to guarantee the free maritime passage through the Strait of Hormuz," Francken wrote, adding that Brussels was coordinating closely with France and other partners toward that objective "once conditions in the region will allow for it, such as a ceasefire."
"Freedom of navigation is essential for our security and economic stability," Francken added.
The diplomatic maneuvering comes amid a deepening crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, through which approximately 20 million barrels of oil flow daily. On March 2, Iran imposed sweeping restrictions on navigation through the passage, threatening to strike any vessels attempting transit without prior coordination — a move that has sent oil prices surging, pushed up shipping and insurance costs, and triggered widespread economic alarm across global markets.
The standoff traces its origins to February 28, when the US and Israel launched a coordinated air offensive against Iran, a campaign that has so far killed more than 1,340 people, among them then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Tehran has since launched retaliatory drone and missile strikes against Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and Gulf states hosting American military assets, further inflaming an already volatile regional landscape.
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