International conference on the security of the Strait of Hormuz held in Paris

On April 16, 2026, an international hybrid conference was held in Paris to discuss maritime security in the Strait of Hormuz. The event was initiated by France and co-chaired by French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. In-person participants included German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Approximately 30 additional participants from Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Latin America joined via video link. The coalition aims to secure shipping routes, with Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide clarifying that the group seeks to operate outside the U.S. and Israeli framework, citing the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea as its legal basis. While organizers frame this as a neutral maritime security initiative, some media reports compare the loose coalition to the 2025 effort to influence peace negotiations between the U.S., Russia, and Ukraine. The specific operational details and timeline for the mission remain undefined.