British Foreign Minister Appeals For Calm After Increased Tension In The Persian Gulf

U.K. -- British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt speaks during a joint press conference at the Foreign Office in central London, May 8, 2019

At a meeting in Brussels of EU foreign ministers, the British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt appealed for calm after an escalation of tensions with Iran over its nuclear program and maritime security in the Persian Gulf.

Hunt noted that the United Kingdom is "worried about the risk of a conflict happening by accident with an escalation that is unintended really on either side."

Jeremy Hunt will be meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo today along with other EU foreign ministers.

Hunt noted that increase in tensions is a serious concern for the United Kingdom.

"I think what we need is a period of calm to make sure that everyone understands what the other side is thinking," said Hunt

This comes after two unexplained incidents on Sunday in which four commercial vessels of various nationalities had suffered damage according to claims by UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia or the UAE did not give details of the attacks.

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi on Monday expressed "regret" for the sabotage of commercial vessels and asked for more details "on the exact extent of of this incident".

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DPA, AFP