Indonesian Foreign Minister Sudjono announced his country’s refusal to join the joint maritime mission proposed by Britain and France, which they claim aims to “protect the movement of commercial vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz.”
The Anadolu Agency reported on Friday, citing the Indonesian newspaper Jakarta Globe, that this came in response to a journalist’s question on the matter.
Sudjono stated that the issue of the joint maritime mission “was under discussion, but we should not join it. This violates our neutral stance and contradicts our free and proactive policy.”
On April 17, an international conference was held in Paris, France, to ensure freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, with representatives from 49 countries participating.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, in a statement during a press conference following the conference, indicated the need to develop military plans to maintain freedom of navigation in the region.
Starmer said, “Britain and France will lead a multinational mission to ensure freedom of navigation when conditions permit.”
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most important waterways, through which approximately 20-30 percent of the world’s total liquefied natural gas and oil flows.
On February 28, the United States and Israel launched a new aggression against Iran, resulting in the deaths of thousands of civilians and targeting schools, hospitals, mosques, and other infrastructure.
With Pakistani mediation, Iranian and American delegations held negotiations in Islamabad on April 10, which extended into the early hours of the following day. However, the negotiations failed to produce an agreement due to the intransigence of the American side, following a 40-day US-Israeli aggression against Iran.