US urges China to dissuade Iran from Closing Strait of Hormuz

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday urged China to use its influence to prevent Iran from closing the strategic Strait of Hormuz following Washington’s recent strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

Speaking on Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures, Rubio warned that shutting the waterway would trigger severe global economic consequences, emphasizing that China, in particular, would be significantly impacted given its heavy reliance on oil imports from the Gulf region.

“I encourage the Chinese government in Beijing to call them about that, because they heavily depend on the Strait of Hormuz for their oil,” Rubio said, adding, “If they do that, it will be another terrible mistake. It’s economic suicide for them.”

The remarks came after Iran’s state-run Press TV reported that the Iranian parliament had approved a measure to close the Strait of Hormuz, through which nearly 20% of the world’s seaborne oil trade passes.

Read more: What could the closure of the Strait of Hormuz mean for the world?

Rubio, who also serves as the national security adviser in the Trump administration, described the potential closure as a “massive escalation” that would warrant a response from the United States and its allies. “We retain options to deal with that, but other countries should be looking at that as well. It would hurt other countries’ economies a lot worse than ours,” he asserted.

As of now, the Chinese embassy in Washington has not issued an official statement in response to Rubio’s appeal.

The heightened rhetoric underscores the growing international concern that the Middle East conflict could further destabilize global energy markets and trigger broader geopolitical fallout.