Report: US Seeks Coalition to Help Reopen Hormuz Shipping

As traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has stalled following a U.S. blockade on Iranian ports, the Trump administration is urging countries to join a new coalition to allow ships to navigate one of the world's most vital oil transit chokepoints.

An internal State Department memo titled "Maritime Freedom Construct," sent Tuesday to U.S. embassies, calls on diplomats to press foreign governments to participate, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. The U.S.-led coalition would share information, coordinate diplomatically and help enforce sanctions, according to the cable.

It is the latest effort by the Trump administration to restart commercial traffic through the strait, despite Iran's attempts to lay mines and attack tankers that transit without Tehran's approval.

The strait's future has become a key factor in stalled U.S.-Iran peace talks, leaving the situation in limbo as concerns rise over global energy prices. The request signals the Trump administration wants other nations involved in managing traffic through the strait.

"Your participation will strengthen our collective ability to restore freedom of navigation and protect the global economy," the cable read, according to the Journal. "Collective action is essential to demonstrate unified resolve and impose meaningful costs on Iranian obstruction of transit through the Strait."

President Donald Trump has criticized allies, particularly NATO members, for not assisting the U.S. and Israeli militarily in the conflict with Iran. Although the Maritime Freedom Construct is not a military coalition, the cable instructs U.S. officials to ask foreign counterparts whether they would like to be a "diplomatic and/or military partner," the Journal reported.

The coalition would be a joint effort between the State Department and U.S. Central Command, according to the cable. The State Department "will serve as the diplomatic operations hub," while CENTCOM "will provide real-time maritime domain awareness" and coordinate information sharing among partner militaries, according to the Journal.

When asked about the proposal, a senior administration official confirmed the idea to the Journal as one of several diplomatic and policy options available to the president.

The Journal previously reported that Trump on Monday told aides to prepare for an extended blockade that could remain in place until Iran caves to his demands on its nuclear ambitions.

On Wednesday, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, "The blockade is genius. The blockade has been 100% foolproof."

"It shows how good our Navy is," Trump said in comments that aired live on Newsmax and the free Newsmax2 streaming platform. "Nobody's going to play games. We have the greatest military in the world, and I built much of it during my first term, and we've been building it since. ... I mean, militarily, we've wiped them out.

"They have no military left. Their navy is at the bottom of the sea. Their air force is never going to fly again. ... Now they have to cry uncle. That's all they have to do. Just say we give up. We give up. But their economy is really in trouble. It's a dead economy."

European countries have held multiple meetings to develop a strategy for navigating the waterway once the conflict ends. The U.K. and France on April 17 chaired a meeting of more than 50 countries on the issue, though U.S. officials have accused European governments of moving too slowly and in a bureaucratic manner during a fast-moving crisis affecting the global economy.

"The MFC would be complementary to other security maritime task forces, including the maritime planning effort the U.K. and France are leading," the cable stated, according to the Journal.

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