An Australian navy warship has set sail for the Persian Gulf as tensions grow between the United States and Iran.

HMAS Toowoomba and its 190 sailors will be part of an international coalition — along with the US and Britain — keeping shipping safe for the next six months in the narrow Strait of Hormuz that passes by Iran.

HMAS Toowoomba during a 2018 deployment. Credit:Royal Australian Navy

The US and Iran have drawn back from full-blown military conflict in the wake of an American air strike that killed top Iranian general Qassim Suleimani on January 3 and Iranian missiles that hit US bases in Iraq in return.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the situation between the two countries had "stabilised — that is a very relative term in the Middle East" last week.