UK plans to send minesweeping drones to help reopen strait of Hormuz

Government reluctant to dispatch ships amid concerns complying with Trump's demands could escalate Iran crisis

Ministers are drawing up plans to send minesweeping drones to the strait of Hormuz amid concerns in Whitehall that complying with Donald Trump's demand to send ships could escalate the crisis.

The government is considering dispatching aerial minesweepers to help clear the vital waterway of mines in an attempt to allow the flow of oil exports to resume. However, officials said that sending ships, as requested over the weekend by the US president, could worsen the situation given the volatile nature of the war.