Special to WorldTribune.com

NICOSIA — Western powers intend to challenge Iran’s domination of
the Strait of Hormuz.

The United States and NATO allies have been sending warships through the
Strait of Hormuz. Western diplomats said Britain, France and the United
States deployed six warships this month through the Iranian-claimed strait.

“We maintain a constant presence in the region as part of our enduring contribution to Gulf security,” a British Defence Ministry spokesman said on Jan. 23.

Washington led the flotilla with the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier, USS Abraham Lincoln. Britain contributed the HMS Argyll, a Type 23 frigate, and France provided an unidentified warship in what diplomats said marked a challenge to Iranian threats to close Hormuz.

“HMS Argyll and a French vessel joined a U.S. carrier group transiting through the Strait of Hormuz to underline the unwavering international commitment to maintaining rights of passage under international law,” the spokesman, who was not identified, said.

The Western flotilla entered Hormuz on Jan. 22 amid Iranian threats to close the strait, passage for 40 percent of global oil shipments. The diplomats said the deployment of the Abraham Lincoln marked a return to the presence of two U.S. aircraft carriers in the Gulf. The USS Carl Vinson has
already been patroling the area.

Iran plans to conduct another naval exercise in the Strait of Hormuz and
other parts of the Gulf. The exercise, Noble Prophet, was expected to
begin within the next 36 hours.

Britain and the United States maintain naval headquarters in Bahrain.
France has deployed warships in the United Arab Emirates.

  British Defence Ministry, HMS Argyll, NATO, NATO flotilla sends message, Noble Prophet, steams through Iran-claimed Strait of Hormuz, USS Abraham Lincoln, USS Carl Vinson