US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday called on China to encourage Iran to not shut down the Strait of Hormuz after Washington carried out strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.
Rubio, appearing on “Fox Business Sunday Morning Futures” with Maria Bartiromo said closing the strait would be an “economic suicide” for Iran that would “hurt other countries’ economies a lot worse than US.”
“I would encourage the Chinese Government in Beijing to call them about that, because they heavily depend on the Straits of Hormuz for their oil.
“If they do that, it’ll be another terrible mistake. It’s economic suicide for them if they do it. And 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 said.
Mr Rubio’s comments on “Fox Business Sunday Morning Futures” with Maria Bartiromo came after reports that Iran approved a proposal to shut down the crucial maritime passage.
The US Secretary warned a move to close the strait would be a massive escalation that would merit a response from the US and others.
Rubio declined to say whether the U.S. would take military action if Iran closes the strait.
Speaking about what US might do next, the U.S. Secretary of State said Sunday on “CBS’s Face the Nation” with Margaret Brennan: “Well, I’m not going to take options away from the President. That’s not something we’re talking about right now in terms of being immediate. But if they do that, the first people that should be angry about it are the Chinese Government, because they take – a lot of their oil comes through there.”
If that were to happen, Rubio said China would “pay a huge price,” as would “every other country in the world,” including the U.S.
“So they should be the first ones that are saying, if they mine the Straits of Hormuz, the Chinese are going to pay a huge price and every other country in the world is going to pay a huge price. We will too.”
The US Secretary highlighted that closing the strait would affect the U.S., but it would have “a lot more impact on the rest of the world,” particularly on China.
“It’ll have some impact on us. It’ll have a lot more impact on the rest of the world – a lot more impact on the rest of the world. That would be a suicidal move on their part because I think the whole world would come against them if they did that,” he said, hypothetically, of the consequences.
Brennan asked Rubio whether the Chinese and Russians will stop trading with Iran. “You have to ask the Chinese and the Russians. Probably not,” Rubio responded.
China condemned the United States for its weekend attacks on Iranian nuclear sites, describing them as serious violations of international law.
In a brief statement on Sunday, the Chinese foreign ministry said the U.S. attacks on Iran and bombing of the nuclear facilities, seriously violated the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and international law, and have exacerbated tensions in the Middle East.
It called on all parties, especially Israel, to reach a ceasefire as soon as possible, ensure the safety of civilians and start dialogue.
“China stands ready to work with the international community to pool efforts together and uphold justice, and work for restoring peace and stability in the Middle East,” the ministry said.
