WASHINGTON – US Secretary of State Marco Rubio held separate calls with his Australian and British counterparts on May 11 to discuss Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, the State Department said.
Rubio discussed “Iran and ongoing efforts to restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz”, the State Department said in separate statements after his calls with Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper.
The Iran war has effectively closed the strait and caused the biggest disruption to the energy market in history.
Before the war, about 20 per cent of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments passed through the strait.
Iran has blocked nearly all ships passing through the strait apart from its own. US President Donald Trump has imposed a separate blockade of Iranian ports.
Trump has repeatedly said Washington’s Western allies have not been doing enough to back the US in the war, which began when the US and Israel attacked Iran on Feb 28.
Iran responded with strikes on Israel and Gulf states that host US bases. US-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed thousands and displaced millions.
Trump said on May 11 that a ceasefire with Iran, which was reached more than a month ago, was “on life support”.
The US, Australia and Britain have imposed sanctions on Iranian networks and individuals both during and before the war. REUTERS
