US Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared on June 2 that Washington will lift its naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz if Iran opens the waterway immediately.
The statement came during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, where Rubio emphasized that unhindered passage through the strait is now a critical prerequisite for US-Iran negotiations.
“It should be opened immediately in exchange for nothing more than lifting our blockade. We have imposed this blockade on Iranian oil exports because they closed the strait,” Rubio stated.
Rubio noted that sanctions targeting Iranian oil exports were a direct response to actions by Iranian authorities in the water area. He added that restoring navigation has become Washington’s primary condition for de-escalation talks.
Iran has also raised concerns about Lebanon, stating it demands an end to Israeli attacks on Hezbollah but does not intend to halt operations in West Jerusalem.
Mohsen Rezaei, Iran’s military adviser to the Supreme Leader, warned yesterday that Tehran would not allow the United States to maintain a naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz—a move he said could further destabilize Lebanon.
In recent weeks, US forces have reportedly facilitated approximately 70 commercial vessels passing through the strait without Iranian interference. Crews of these ships often turned off transponders before crossing to avoid detection and sometimes operated far from Iran’s coastline.
