U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared Wednesday that the United States remains open to a negotiated resolution to the Iran conflict, but said Tehran has shown no genuine interest in reaching a deal. His remarks came as the escalating war began disrupting two of the globe’s most vital energy corridors.
Rubio delivered his comments during a gathering of Southeast Asian foreign ministers, one day after three oil tankers carrying Saudi crude bound for Asia reversed course in the Red Sea. The ships turned back apparently due to threats from Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who are aligned with Iran.
The Houthis, who hold control over the coastline at the mouth of the Red Sea, announced a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia on Monday. The move opened a potential new front in a war that has claimed thousands of lives across the Gulf region since it began on February 28, when the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran.
Iran had already been threatening to block shipping through the Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, making the Red Sea the primary alternative export route for millions of barrels of Saudi oil each day.
Diplomatic efforts have not completely stalled. A senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday that Tehran received a proposal from mediators for a 10-day ceasefire aimed at preserving the interim ceasefire agreement signed by the U.S. and Iran in June — itself a replacement for an earlier ceasefire reached in April. Iran’s Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni also traveled to mediator Pakistan, urging Islamabad to keep pushing for a resolution.
Rubio acknowledged that Washington was “always committed to diplomacy” but questioned whether Iran shared that commitment.
“The problem we’re having right now is that they’re not serious about talks. If they’re serious, we’re serious. If they’re not, then we will do what’s necessary to protect our interests, and also the interests of our allies,” Rubio said while speaking in Manila.
He also warned against allowing Iran to seize control of the Strait of Hormuz, saying such a precedent would be dangerous for the entire world — including Southeast Asian nations that already face territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea.
“If we create a precedent in the Middle East where a nation state can decide that they are going to control an international waterway, charge a toll, and if you don’t pay them blow up your ships, we have created a very dangerous precedent, which will repeat itself in other parts of the world, including in this region,” Rubio said.
With no diplomatic breakthrough on the horizon, U.S. forces bombed targets inside Iran for the 11th night in a row on Tuesday. Residents of Tehran reported hearing explosions in the early morning hours of Wednesday as Iran activated air defenses over its capital, according to Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency.
Additional explosions were reported in the southeastern coastal cities of Chabahar and Konarak, and two blasts were heard in Bushehr, the location of Iran’s only nuclear power plant, according to Iran’s official IRNA news agency.
Iran also struck back, targeting U.S. military installations in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan. A tanker was also hit in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran claimed to have struck infrastructure belonging to Amazon in Bahrain, where the U.S. technology company runs a regional data center. Amazon declined to comment, and Reuters was unable to independently confirm the claim.
U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed that 18 American service members have been killed since the war began, including four who died in Iranian attacks on U.S. bases in Jordan and Iraq over recent days.
Oil prices climbed further in Asian trading Wednesday, building on gains of more than 2% the day before following the Houthi threats. Brent crude was hovering above $91 per barrel, and U.S. gasoline prices rose back above $4 per gallon.
In a letter sent to shipping companies Tuesday, the Houthis threatened to attack any vessels loading or offloading Saudi oil. Three tankers carrying Saudi crude intended for China and India made U-turns in the Red Sea, diverting toward the Suez Canal rather than risking passage near the Yemeni coastline.
Trump said the Houthis had not yet closed the Bab el-Mandeb — the “Gate of Tears” strait at the entrance to the Red Sea — but warned the U.S. would respond if they did. “So far it hasn’t happened,” Trump said. “If something like that happens, we take care of it.”
Saudi Arabia had been partially avoiding shipping disruptions by routing oil through a pipeline to the Red Sea port of Yanbu. However, a full Houthi closure of that alternative route could significantly reduce global oil supplies by trapping most Saudi exports.
Trump also renewed threats Tuesday to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities at Natanz again “pretty soon.” He had previously said in June 2025 that the site had been “totally obliterated” after U.S. forces bombed the mountain-buried facility that month. Iran vowed retaliation.
A health ministry official reported that the recent U.S. strikes on Iran have killed 50 civilians and wounded 500 others.
