The US administration is preparing to announce within the coming week the creation of a multinational coalition to escort commercial vessels through the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

The initiative is aimed at ensuring the safe passage of shipping through one of the world’s most critical oil transit routes amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East, The Caspian Post reports via foreign media.

Discussions are currently underway on whether the naval escorts should begin before or after hostilities in the region come to an end.

Details about the coalition’s participants have not yet been disclosed, though the report says several countries are expected to join the initiative once it is formally announced.