U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Strait of Hormuz must be reopened without tolls to ensure global stability.
The situation is critical because the strait is a primary artery for the world's oil flow. Any prolonged closure or the imposition of illegal fees could destabilize global energy markets and increase international tensions.
Speaking during a press conference at a NATO meeting in Sweden on Thursday, May 22, Rubio addressed the current state of the waterway. He said the ongoing situation is unlawful, illegal, unsustainable for the world, and unacceptable [1, 2]. Rubio said that no country besides Iran supports the implementation of tolls on the strait [3, 4].
Rubio said that progress has been made on an outline to reopen the waterway without these charges [3]. However, he said that the U.S. requires a contingency strategy if diplomatic efforts fail. "We need a plan B if Iran keeps the Strait of Hormuz closed," Rubio said [5].
The Secretary of State said that the waterway will be reopened "one way or the other" [2]. He said that "someone's going to have to do something about it" if the current restrictions persist [6]. These remarks follow ongoing U.S.–Iran negotiations regarding the security and accessibility of the region [2].
Rubio's comments align with the U.S. position that freedom of navigation is a fundamental international right. By labeling the tolls as illegal, the U.S. signals that it does not recognize Iran's authority to charge for passage through the strait, a move that maintains the legal status of the waterway as an international transit corridor.
“"What's happening in Hormuz is unlawful, it's illegal, it's unsustainable for the world, it's unacceptable."”
The U.S. is escalating its rhetoric to prevent the normalization of transit tolls in the Strait of Hormuz. By framing the issue as a matter of international law and global economic survival, the administration is signaling that it may move beyond diplomatic negotiations to military or multilateral enforcement if Iran does not grant unrestricted access to the waterway.
