US Secretary of State Rubio backs unrestricted navigation through Strait of Hormuz after Gulf meeting

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Gulf foreign ministers in Manama, Bahrain, alongside Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan and representatives from Oman, Qatar and other GCC states. The joint US‑GCC declaration reaffirmed the need to reopen the Strait of Hormuz for international shipping without any restrictions, fees or taxes, and emphasized that the waterway is an international passage, not subject to unilateral charges.

Rubio warned that Iran continues to fund regional proxy groups such as Hezbollah and the Houthis and stressed that any US assistance to Iran would be conditioned on Tehran abandoning its ideological export. The statement also voiced support for Syria’s stability, affirmed Lebanon’s sovereignty, and condemned Iran‑backed attacks in Iraq, underscoring the Gulf bloc’s coordinated stance on broader regional security challenges.