Britain did not ask Canada to join its coalition

Instead, Britain sought Canada's support for the defense of the Western Powers' agreement with Iran to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, Canadian Press reported.

A senior British official has confirmed, on condition of anonymity, that Britain put on its European allies to build a naval coalition. Already, talks have been held with France and Germany.

According to him, Canadian diplomatic assistance will be needed to resolve the conflict.

Great Britain considers that the nuclear agreement between the permanent members of the UN Security Council (United States, Great Britain, France, Russia and China), Germany and Iran is still the best map to contain Tehran and ensure the stability of the region, said this senior official.

Canada also has military troops in neighboring Iraq, where it leads a training mission for local forces under NATO auspices.

We support diplomatic and constructive approaches to this situation and work closely with our allies and partners on this important issuesaid Adam Austen, spokesman for Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland.

Regarding the joint global action plan (the Iranian nuclear deal), Canada remains concerned about the Iranian nuclear program and calls on Iran to honor its commitments under the agreement, he added.

The decision of US President Donald Trump to withdraw the United States from the Iranian agreement has greatly resuscitated tensions in the region, according to many observers.

The conflict escalated last week when Iran seized a British tanker, the Stena Impero, as it sailed the narrow international route between Oman and Iran, where 20 percent of the world's oil trades. It was a reprisal after the Royal Navy seized an Iranian oil tanker suspected of violating the sanctions imposed on Syria.

The tanker Stena Impero was seized by the Iranian authorities on July 19, 2019.

Photo: Associated Press / Stena Bulk

Gather a force led by Europe

Britain has already announced its intention to bring together a "Europe-led" force to protect international shipping.

To date, we have not received any specific requests from Great Britain on this subjectsaid Todd Lane, a spokesman for Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan.

Former Canadian naval commanders who have served in the region, as well as experts from the Middle East, say this is not necessarily a bad thing. According to them, diplomacy will be better able to solve the current crisis than sending warships into the Persian Gulf.

We are still at the beginning of the crisis. Decision makers are concerned about unnecessary escalation of tensionsays Harry Harsch, commander of HMCS Fredericton during the invasion of Iraq by the United States.

Harry Harsch, now vice-president of the Navy League of Canada, has conducted numerous missions in the Strait of Hormuz, where international borders meet.

It is a very scary place. It's 21 miles wide. If we do the math, if we take the limit of 12 miles from Oman and the limit of 12 miles from Iran, guess what? They cross each other.

Bessma Momani, from the University of Waterloo, believes it would be important for Canada to join a coalition with its European allies, if asked.

"However, that presents risks at a time when a hawkish populist like Boris Johnson is seizing power in the UK. There is a risk of being involved in a wider conflict between the United States, the United Kingdom and Iran, "she said.