Carns at RFA Lyme Bay — UK-France Mine-Clearing Operation Stands Ready in Gibraltar
Armed Forces Minister Al Carns took a small group of reporters to visit the RFA Lyme Bay at Gibraltar on Monday as the amphibious landing vessel prepares for a possible international operation, led by the United Kingdom and France, to secure the Strait of Hormuz. The vessel was being loaded with ammunition and mine-hunting sea drones equipped with sonar. Hundreds of British sailors are waiting to be deployed for a mine-clearing mission — only once a peace agreement is reached. Cmdr Gemma Britton, in charge of the Royal Navy’s Mine and Threat Exploitation Group, said Iran could have a “huge” variety of mines throughout the strait. The priority would be to clear a transit lane for around 700 ships to leave.
A lane flowing in the opposite direction would then be cleared to allow ships to enter. Clearing the entire strait could take months or years. A US official said the US has not found or destroyed any mines in the strait, nor have any ships been damaged — though last week’s CENTCOM strike statement that two IRGC boats were “attempting to emplace mines” complicates that picture. The Carns visit is the most operationally concrete UK signal yet that British naval forces are prepared to participate in the post-agreement Hormuz reopening — and gives Sir Keir Starmer’s defence platform a forward-deployed dimension at a moment when his domestic-political position is contested. Carns himself is being talked of as a potential dark-horse leadership contender if a contest is triggered.