Germany’s foreign minister said on Monday Iran must ultimately bear the cost of any international operation to clear mines from the Strait of Hormuz, Anadolu reports. Johann Wadephul made the remarks in an interview with the Handelsblatt newspaper after being asked whether European countries might offer Iran financial incentives to secure Tehran’s consent for a mine-clearing mission. “We do not need to offer Tehran anything at all; quite the contrary: Iran has unlawfully mined an international shipping lane,” Wadephul said. “If we clear it together with other European partners, we do not intend to charge a fee for doing so at this stage,” he added. “In principle, however, it would be justified, and Iran ought to foot the bill, since we […]