US reports slight progress on Iran and Strait of Hormuz talks

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday that there has been “some slight progress” regarding negotiations over Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, cautioning against overstating the development.

Iran’s tolling system plan rejected

“There's been some slight progress, I don't want to exaggerate it, but there's been a little bit of movement, and that's good,” Rubio told reporters ahead of a NATO foreign ministers meeting alongside Secretary General Mark Rutte. He said the “fundamentals remain the same,” adding: “Iran can never have nuclear weapons, it just cannot make them.” Rubio accused Tehran of attempting to establish a “tolling system” in the Strait of Hormuz and trying to persuade Oman to join the initiative. “There is not a country in the world that should accept that,” he said, calling the idea “not acceptable.” He warned that if such a system were allowed in Hormuz, it would spread to other strategic waterways.

UN resolution and NATO concerns

Rubio said Washington is working through the UN on a Bahrain-sponsored resolution and criticized unnamed Security Council members considering a veto. “Let's see if the United Nations still works,” he said. Rutte noted that the NATO meeting would focus on defense spending, Ukraine, and freedom of navigation, adding that it is “not acceptable that the freedom of navigation is basically trampled upon as it is at the moment.” Rubio also described the upcoming NATO leaders summit in Ankara as “one of the more important leaders' summits in the history of NATO.” Türkiye continues to play a key role in ensuring maritime security in the region and supports diplomatic solutions that respect international law.