The US and Britain will not tolerate Iranian attempts to block the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, defense chiefs from the two Western powers said yesterday.

US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta and his counterpart Philip Hammond spoke about Iran’s “destabilising behaviour” during a bilateral meeting.

“The Iranians need to understand that the US and the international community are going to hold them directly responsible for any disruption of shipping in that region — by Iran or, for that matter, by its surrogates,” Mr Panetta, the Pentagon chief, said.

“And the US is fully prepared for all contingencies here.”

He said Washington has “invested in capabilities to ensure that the Iranian attempt to close down shipping in the Gulf is something that we are going to be able to defeat if they make that decision to do that.”

Fears of a closure of the Strait of Hormuz – through which about a fifth of the world’s traded oil passes – intensified earlier this year after Iran threatened to close it if Western governments kept up efforts to rein in Tehran’s controversial nuclear program by choking off its oil exports.