Rubio Accuses Iran of Using Strait of Hormuz as 'Economic Nuclear Weapon'

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has accused Iran of using the Strait of Hormuz as an "economic nuclear weapon," stressing that Washington will not accept the reopening of the waterway on Tehran's terms or postponing talks on its nuclear program. According to Axios and several other outlets, Iran has passed a new offer to Washington, which includes a plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the war, while deferring nuclear negotiations to a later stage. Speaking on Fox News on Monday, Rubio was skeptical of the latest overture. "If what they mean by opening the straits is, 'Yes, the straits are open, as long as you coordinate with Iran, get our permission, or we'll blow you up, and you pay us' – that's not opening the straits," he said. Rubio argued that Iran's de facto control over the waterway would create a dangerous precedent. "This is not the Suez Canal, this is not the Panama Canal, these are international waters. And if that's normalized, not only does that set a precedent in the Middle East, it sets a precedent all over the world," he argued, calling the strait "the equivalent of an economic nuclear weapon that they're trying to use against the world." On Tehran's nuclear program, Rubio stressed a hardline stance. "Suffice it to say that the nuclear question is the reason why we're in this in the first place," he said. Rubio also dismissed the idea that the Islamic Republic has any true moderates among its leadership, stating, "they're all hardliners in Iran." "There's no doubt in my mind that at some point in the future if this radical clerical regime remains in charge in Iran, they will decide they want a nuclear weapon… That fundamental issue still has to be confronted. That still remains the core issue here." The White House confirmed US President Donald Trump had reviewed Iran's offer. Multiple people briefed on the discussions told the New York Times that the president was not satisfied, and a US official suggested accepting it could appear to deny Trump a victory, given his repeated insistence that Iran's nuclear program should be dismantled. Tehran has said it does not seek to acquire nuclear weapons and refused US demands to surrender its stockpile of highly enriched uranium and dismantle its nuclear program.