MELBOURNE: Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday called for the Strait of Hormuz to be open and said the United States had not requested Australian help to blockade it.

President Donald Trump said the US Navy would swiftly begin a blockade of ships entering or leaving the Strait of Hormuz, after US-Iran ceasefire talks in Pakistan ended without an agreement.

Albanese told Nine Network television on Monday: “We've received no requests, and they've made this announcement overnight and they've done that in a unilateral way. And we haven't been asked to participate.”

“What we want to see is negotiations continue and resume. We want to see an end to this conflict. We want to see the Strait of Hormuz opened for all. We want to see freedom of navigation as required by international law as well,” Albanese added.