Britain's newest warship is heading to the Gulf for its first mission at a time of tensions over Iran's threat to close the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a key transport route for oil.
The Royal Navy's $1.5 billion (£1 billion) Type 45 destroyer HMS Daring, which has a "stealth" design to help avoid detection by radar, is to join other British ships in the region.
UK Defence Secretary Philip Hammond has publicly warned Iran that any attempt by Iran to block the strategically important waterway in retaliation for sanctions against its oil exports would be "illegal and unsuccessful" and the Royal Navy would join any action to keep it open.
ratawasiya
