UK military planners deployed to CENTCOM MacDill AFB to draw up Hormuz reopening plans

A team of British military planners has traveled to the United States and deployed to US Central Command (CENTCOM) headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, to help draw up plans to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, according to a British official who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly, per the New York Times. The deployment was earlier reported by The Times of London. The move marks a concrete military-level commitment from the UK to Hormuz reopening planning, going beyond the diplomatic statements made by NATO Secretary General Rutte earlier Thursday. Trump has sharply criticized Britain during the war, saying the country 'should be involved enthusiastically' in efforts to reopen the waterway. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has publicly maintained that the best way to resolve the crisis is to de-escalate hostilities, but the physical deployment of military planners to CENTCOM signals growing UK operational involvement in Hormuz planning despite Starmer's public posture.