France shares U.S. objective of reopening Hormuz Strait, foreign minister says

VAUX DE CERNAY, France, March 27 (Reuters) - France's Foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Friday that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggested that Washington's objective was to destroy Iran's ballistic capabilities and that Paris shared the same objectives on restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

"I am not going to speak on behalf of Marco Rubio and I will gladly refer to the public statements he has recently made, which correspond to the conversations we had today regarding the stated U.S. military objectives, being the neutralization of Iran's ballistic capabilities," Barrot said on the sidelines of a G7 meeting in France.

When asked about whether the U.S. had made requests about Hormuz, Barrot said France shared the same objectives as the U.S. and that an escort system for tankers would be necessary once the peak of hostilities in region is over.