Rubio says Iran is using Strait of Hormuz as leverage, urges allies to step up

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Sunday that Iran is using the Strait of Hormuz as leverage in the ongoing Middle East conflict.

Speaking ahead of a trip to the Philippines for a meeting of foreign ministers with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Rubio said other countries need to do more to protect global shipping.

Why is Iran using the Strait of Hormuz as leverage?

Rubio said elements within Iran want to control the strait and hold it as a bargaining tool against the international community. He warned that this approach puts at risk the roughly one-fifth of global oil and gas supplies that passed through the waterway before the war escalated.

"It's clear that Iran, at least some people in Iran, want to control the straits and hold that as leverage against the world," Rubio told reporters.

What is the US doing to protect global shipping?

Rubio said Washington will keep acting to safeguard shipping lanes through the strait but stressed that the US should not carry the burden alone. He called on other nations to contribute either military hardware or financial support to the effort.

"The United States will do and continue to do what it needs to, to protect global shipping, but other countries need to begin to step up and provide, whether it's hardware or finances, to help carry that burden," he said.

What caused the truce between Iran and the US to break down?

A fragile truce between Iran and the United States collapsed after reported Iranian attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz. The waterway is a critical international passage that carried a fifth of the world's oil and gas supply before the conflict began.

Rubio said any agreement with Iran cannot hold if its terms are being violated. "They can't have an MOU that's alive if they're violating the terms of it," he said.

Is a diplomatic solution still possible with Iran?

Asked whether an off-ramp remained available to de-escalate the conflict, Rubio said the US remains open to diplomacy, but only on realistic terms. He said any deal would need to be one Iran is genuinely willing to honor.

"I think we're always open to diplomacy. It has to be real. It has to be a deal that they're willing to live by," Rubio said. "What I will say is that the United States always remains open to a diplomatic solution. We've tried multiple times with Iran, and we'll continue to try."