French presidency official

"The reason why we must make a renewed effort today is simply that the blockade of Hormuz continues, the damage to the world's economy is therefore becoming more and more pronounced, and the risk of a prolongation of hostilities is too serious for us to accept it."

"What we are proposing is that Iran gains passage for its ships through the Strait and in return commits to negotiating with the Americans on issues of nuclear materials, missiles, and the region."

"Under these conditions we could deploy the multinational force to secure the convoys crossing the Strait of Hormuz and this obviously requires that the Iranians not fire on the ships."

"We collectively want to send the signal that not only are we ready to secure the Strait of Hormuz, but that we are also capable of doing so."