Jeremy Hunt vows to use ‘hard power’ in bid to halt Iran's threats
Jeremy Hunt vowed to boost the “hard power” of the UK’s military
in direct response to “deeply troubling” recent events in the Middle East,
which has seen the nation and Iran’s relationship dramatically deteriorate.
The Tory leadership
hopeful warned that the Royal Navy had been “run down too much”, claiming the
latest row between the UK and Iran was proof funding needed to be improved.
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Mr Hunt said more warships were needed and the
Navy needed to be “expanded to meet the threats we face”. His comments come
after Iranian ships failed to hijack a British oil tanker in the Arabian Gulf.
The
ships attempted to seize the UK vessel as it skirted close to Iranian waters.
The
ship was ordered to change course before the alleged Revolutionary Guard ships
tried to seize the tanker.
But
in his latest attempt to win votes in the upcoming Conservative leadership
battle, Mr Hunt said he would increase warship and carrier-based jets as
“boosting our hard power is the surest way to keep Britain respected
overseas".
He
also waded into a dispute that erupted after oil companies argued petrol prices
in the UK would jump up unless relations between the UK and Iran improved.
Mr Hunt argued that Iran acted with
“incredible menace” following the attempted to halt the British Heritage
tanker.
Iran
responded by saying it had acted in response to the Royal Marines detainment of
an Iranian tanker near Gibraltar last week.
The
UK said it acted as it suspected the tanker to breach EU oil sanctions on Syria.
The
former Health Secretary said: “When you look at this week’s events it shows
that over recent decades, we have run down the Navy too much.”
Following the seizure of the Iranian oil
tanker, Mohsen Rezaei, Secretary of Iran's Expediency Discernment Council
threatened the UK.
He
said: "If Britain does not release the Iranian oil tanker, it is the
authorities' duty to seize a British oil tanker."
Mohammad
Javad Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister, said the UK’s action had set “a dangerous
precedent and must end now”.
Moreover,
the Islamic Republic has also called the UK ambassador to Tehran to lodge a
formal protest against the seizure.