Trump wants other countries to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz. That might not be so easy.

U.S. allies and rivals reacted cautiously after President Donald Trump said they should monitor the Strait of Hormuz, as Iranian threats to strike ships on the vital trade route continue to wreak havoc on global markets.

“Many countries, especially those affected by Iran’s attempted closure of the Strait of Hormuz, will send warships” to secure the sea route, he posted on Truth Social on Saturday, listing China, France, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom and “others” among the countries he hoped to provide support.

“The United States will also coordinate with these countries to make sure everything goes quickly, smoothly and well. This should always have been a team effort, and now it will be,” he added in a later message.

The Strait of Hormuz, which connects the Persian Gulf to the ocean, is a key trade artery through which about a fifth of the world’s oil passes, transported by about 3,000 ships sailing through the corridor each month. But numerous ships have been attacked in the region since the war began two weeks ago, bringing trade to a virtual halt and causing oil prices to rise dramatically.

In a telephone interview with NBC News on Saturday, Trump said several countries would help secure the strait. “Not only are they committed, but they think it’s a great idea,” he said. Energy Secretary Chris Wright told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” on Sunday that he expects China to be a “constructive partner” in reopening the strait.

But the countries Trump named in his initial message, all of which were affected by the strait closure, have so far responded lukewarmly to Trump’s request for support.

Tokyo, a close U.S. ally, did not officially respond to Trump’s call. Its Foreign Ministry told Japanese broadcaster NHK that Japan would not immediately send military ships at Trump’s request, saying: “Japan decides its own response, and independent judgment is fundamental.” »

The French government did not immediately respond to this request. While it has already deployed ships to reassure its allies in the wider region, and French President Emmanuel Macron has already raised the possibility of escorting ships through the strait in the future, its Foreign Ministry said on Saturday that its ships would remain in a “defensive” posture in the eastern Mediterranean.

A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington told CNN that China is calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities, without any direct response to Trump’s request.

British Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said on NBC News’ UK broadcast partner Sky News on Sunday that “the best and most conclusive way to reopen the strait is to end this conflict”, while saying the UK was “talking with our allies, including the United States” about any help that could be provided.

He said “a range of things” were being looked at, including the provision of “self-contained mine hunting equipment”.

South Korea’s presidential office said Sunday it would carefully consider the request.

“We note President Trump’s remarks on social media. South Korea and the United States will continue to communicate closely and carefully review the issue before making a decision,” the South Korean presidential office told NBC News on Sunday.

While it remains to be seen what steps these countries might eventually take in response to any looming economic crisis, their lukewarm response appears to throw cold water on any hopes Trump may have had for a quick resolution to the blockade.

“The countries named by Trump have all gone silent, which is quite telling,” HA Hellyer, a senior research associate at the Royal United Services Institute in London, told NBC News. France is “the closest thing to a yes,” he said, although even Macron speaks of something “purely defensive.”

“It’s far from a real mission, and I don’t expect it to happen. In my opinion, more investment will be put into de-escalation efforts,” he added.

Hellyer said that even if a coalition were formed, “safe passage is not guaranteed,” with mines, drones, boats and anti-ship missiles posing a threat, thoughts echoed by Michael A. Horowitz, a geopolitical and security analyst.

“Protecting ships is a very big gamble,” he said. “Operationally, you place military assets in a very narrow corridor, which gives Iran multiple opportunities to strike at close range. »

To remove these threats, Horowitz told NBC News, “you need more than air and naval power: You’ll need troops on the ground, along key areas of the coast.”

Regardless, Horowitz said he was skeptical that such a force could stabilize markets. “A single attack is enough to suspend traffic,” he said. “The bar is really high to create enough confidence to lift the de facto shutdown. »

Meanwhile, some countries appear to be trying to negotiate safe passage with Iran.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed to CBS News on Sunday that “we have been approached by a number of countries who want to have safe passage for their ships.” He said: “It’s up to our military to decide, and they’ve already decided to let through, you know, a group of ships belonging to different countries.”

Trump, who had previously been optimistic that the sea route would be reopened through military might as the United States bombed Iran, appeared to acknowledge Saturday that it would be more difficult to stop Tehran from attacking the ships.

“We’ve already destroyed 100 percent of Iran’s military capability, but it’s easy for them to send in a drone or two, drop a mine, or launch a short-range missile somewhere along or in this waterway, no matter how defeated they are,” he wrote on Truth Social.

The acknowledgment came a day after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth suggested that blocking the strategic waterway was not a major concern. “We have fixed this problem and we don’t need to worry about it,” he said at a press conference on Friday.

Trump’s call for European allies to support them in the war comes a week after he told British Prime Minister Keir Starmer that British aircraft carriers were not needed in the region.

In a Truth Social article addressed to Starmer last Saturday, Trump said: “We don’t need them anymore – but we’ll remember them. We don’t need people joining wars after they’ve already won!”

Tensions with European allies have been high amid the conflict, with Trump previously clashing with the United Kingdom and Spain over the use of their military bases.

“We’re not dealing with Winston Churchill,” Trump said after Starmer refused to allow the US to use British bases as part of its initial strikes, only later allowing their bases to be used for “defensive” actions.

A day later, after Spain banned U.S. military aircraft from using its jointly operated bases in Andalusia, Trump said the United States would seek to “cut off all trade with Spain,” a member of the European Union’s single market.