Hegseth Says Britain And Other Allies Should ‘Step Up’ To Open The Strait Of Hormuz
Hegseth pointed to social media post from President Trump about allies and said Iranian missiles don’t reach the U.S. but could hit allies and others.
Published : March 31, 2026 at 9:00 PM IST
Washington: US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday said there are countries around the world that ought be prepared to step up on this critical waterway as well. Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine have wrapped up a news conference at the Pentagon.
Speaking at the conference, he said, “It’s not just the United States Navy. Last time I checked, there was supposed to be a big, bad Royal Navy that could be prepared to do things like that as well.” Hegseth said the U.S. undertook the war in Iran for the “free world” and questioned the value of the NATO alliance if those countries don’t stand with America.
Hegseth pointed to a social media post from President Donald Trump about allies and said Iranian missiles don’t reach the U.S. but could hit allies and others. “The president’s pointing out you don’t have much of an, an alliance if you have countries that are not willing to stand with you when you need them,” Hegseth said.
Speaking at the conference, Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said U.S. military action in Iran remains focused on “targeting their minelaying capability, their naval assets.” “We’ve taken out again more than 150 ships,” Caine said, adding that attack helicopters are now joining in the effort targeting Iranian naval targets.
Another key objective of the war is disabling Iran’s defense industrial base, including nuclear research sites, Caine said. “This includes factories, warehouses, nuclear weapons research and development labs, and the associated infrastructure required for Iran to reconstitute its combat capability,” Caine said.
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