BRUSSELS, July 23 (Reuters) – France, Italy, the Netherlands and Denmark support a European-led naval mission to ensure safe shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, three senior EU diplomats said on Tuesday after Britain proposed the idea following Iran‘s seizure of a tanker.
Britain proposed the idea to senior EU diplomats at a meeting in Brussels, saying it would not involve the European Union, NATO or the United States directly, the diplomats said.
Spain, Sweden, Poland and Germany also showed interest. The mission to protect vital Middle East oil shipping lanes could be run by a joint Franco-British command, one of the envoys said.
(Reporting by Robin Emmott; Editing by Alison Williams)