LONDON, 14 May. - (ANA) - Britain will deploy autonomous mine hunting equipment and cutting-edge counter drone systems, along with Typhoon jets and HMS Dragon as part of a future defensive mission to secure freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

 

UK Defence Secretary John Healey announced Britain's contribution to Strait of Hormuz mission at an online summit involving more than 40 defence ministers.

 

The Iran war has drastically reduced traffic through the strait, disrupting oil exports and leading to soaring energy prices.

 

"With our allies, this multinational mission will be defensive, independent and credible," he said.

 

The UK's contribution will be backed by £115 million ($155.6 million) of funding for mine-hunting ​drones and counter-drone systems, as London ‌seeks to reassure ⁠commercial shipping of its commitment ​to freedom of navigation amid heightened regional ​tensions.

 

The ‌package will include autonomous systems to detect and clear sea ⁠mines. It will also include high-speed drone boats, Typhoon jets and the HMS Dragon, an air defence destroyer that is already on its way to the Middle East.

 

Britain has more than 1,000 personnel ​in the region as part of existing defensive operations, including counter-drone teams and fast plane squadrons.

 

France moved its Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea on Wednesday in a bid to show the US and Iran it was willing to help solve the Hormuz crisis.

 

US President Donald Trump has suggested he is willing to oversee a lengthy blockade of the strait. An extended blockade would risk further damage to the global economy. The US government assumes ⁠it will remain ⁠effectively shut until at least late May, a forecast by the Energy Information Administration has shown.   - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/13 May 2026 - - -