Royal Navy's HMS Dragon to be sent to the Middle East ahead of operation to protect shipping in the Strait of Hormuz

A Royal Navy warship will head to the Middle East to join an international mission safeguarding shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

Type 45 destroyer HMS Dragon will “pre-position” in the region, ready to join the UK and French-led initiative once hostilities cease between Iran and US-Israeli forces. She has spent several weeks off Cyprus, guarding the RAF’s Akrotiri air base from drone attacks during the conflict between Iran and the United States.

A fragile ceasefire remains in place, although attacks on Friday saw US forces hit two Iranian tankers that were trying to breach the blockade imposed by US president Donald Trump.

The proposed mission championed by Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron would involve a coalition of nations willing to ensure freedom of navigation in the strait, a vital route for global oil and gas supplies along with other goods including fertiliser.

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: “We can confirm that HMS Dragon will deploy to the Middle East to pre-position ahead of any future multinational mission to protect international shipping when conditions allow them to transit the Strait of Hormuz.

“The pre-positioning of HMS Dragon is part of prudent planning that will ensure that the UK is ready, as part of a multinational coalition jointly led by the UK and France, to secure the strait, when conditions allow.”

The decision to move HMS Dragon from the eastern Mediterranean, where it had been defending British bases on Cyprus, will allow the destroyer to contribute immediately should the defensive mission in the strait be launched.

The Government now believes Cyprus has sufficient protection to allow the Type 45 air defence destroyer to head to the Middle East.

Around 40 nations are involved in the multinational plan to escort shipping through the strait when conditions allow.

As well as HMS Dragon, the support ship RFA Lyme Bay is being converted to act as a mothership for mine hunting drones which could be used to help clear the waterway.

The decision to send HMS Dragon was signed off by Defence Secretary John Healey and Chief of the Defence Staff Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton.

A defence source said: “This move is all about being prepared, should the conditions allow for our coalition to begin its work. The UK and France will continue to lead these efforts, turning diplomatic consensus into military options.”