French President Macron: Military Reopening of the Strait of Hormuz is Unrealistic

Odaily News French President Emmanuel Macron stated that attempting to reopen the Strait of Hormuz through military means is "unrealistic." Speaking to reporters during his visit to Seoul on Thursday, he said such actions would take an uncertain amount of time and expose the involved parties to risks from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. "This has never been our chosen option; we consider it unrealistic," Macron said. "We must be able to reopen this strait because it is strategically important for energy, fertilizers, and international trade, but this can only be achieved through negotiation with Iran." He stated that the first step should be achieving a ceasefire, followed by restarting negotiations, and that conducting protective missions could help ensure ships are not attacked. "The world also cannot afford a situation where Iran can decide to open or close this strait at any time," Macron added. (Jin10)