Rubio accuses Iran of not keeping its commitments as U.S. forces hit Iran

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday accused Iran of not honoring the Strait of Hormuz deal, while reiterating that Washington was “committed to diplomacy” in the Middle East.

His comments come as U.S. Central Command hit Iranian targets for an 11th straight night, as it seeks to “continue degrading Iran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.”

Centcom said it had hit military operations centers, drone storage facilities, and military logistics infrastructure.

Speaking at the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ meeting in the Philippines, Rubio said that “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 is necessary to protect our interest and also the interest of our allies.”

He added that a key sticking point between Teheran and Washington was that Iran “demands the right” to control traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, a right it does not have under international law.

“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 warned.

Rubio appeared to make a veiled reference to China, saying that “of all the regions in the world, the one I don’t need to teach about the importance of freedom of navigation in international waterways, it is this region.”

The U.S. Navy has in the past conducted “freedom of navigation” operations around disputed islands in the South China Sea, where several Southeast Asian countries have competing claims with China, whose “nine-dash line” claims almost all of the sea as its waters.

That is despite a 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration that said that China’s claims has no basis under international law. China has refused to recognize that outcome.

Oil prices jumped on Wednesday morning. International benchmark Brent crude futures with September delivery rose 3.7% to $94.43 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures advanced 4% to $87.67.

U.S. and Iran had signed an interim memorandum of understanding on June 17 that halted military operations, called for the reopening of Hormuz and established a 60-day window for negotiating a permanent agreement, including terms covering Iran’s nuclear program. But the document left the future management of the Strait of Hormuz unresolved.

Iran interpreted the text as recognizing a role for Tehran in managing…