Rubio warns ASEAN that Iran Hormuz tolls could hit global economy

Marco Rubio told ASEAN ministers that any Iranian toll regime in the Strait of Hormuz would imperil global trade. He used the Manila meetings to stress US backing for ASEAN and wider maritime security norms.

In Short

• Manila talks focused on maritime security, regional stability and conflict spillovers
• ASEAN members remain alarmed as West Asia tensions affect Asian economies
• South China Sea disputes involving China and ASEAN claimants stayed central

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday warned Asian leaders that any move by Iran to control and collect tolls in the Strait of Hormuz would threaten the global economy and the principle of freedom of navigation. Speaking at the start of an annual meeting with foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Manila, Rubio also sought to reassure the bloc over Washington's focus on the war in West Asia, saying, "we're with ASEAN 100 per cent."

The wider gathering in the Philippine capital has brought together top diplomats from the US, China, Russia and several other countries, with territorial disputes in the South China Sea and the war involving Iran among the main issues. Rubio also met his counterparts from the Quad countries and later held talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, with discussions covering regional issues, the Iran war and an interim trade deal.

Rubio said any precedent allowing a country to control an international waterway by force would have wider consequences beyond West Asia. "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," he said.

ASEAN countries have expressed alarm over the renewed war in West Asia, which has affected their region. The three days of talks in Manila began on Tuesday, with the South China Sea disputes high on the agenda. The disputes involve China, Taiwan, the Philippines and ASEAN members Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei. The Trump administration has repeatedly criticised what it described as China's increasingly aggressive actions in the South China Sea, particularly to the disadvantage of smaller claimant countries such as the Philippines, Washington's oldest treaty ally in Asia.

Rubio also met the foreign ministers of the four-nation Quad grouping of the US, Australia, India and Japan. The ministers discussed shared priorities in technology, humanitarian assistance, emergency response, and maritime and transnational security. In a joint statement, they reaffirmed their commitment to maritime security initiatives aimed at countering China's growing influence in the region. "We are united in our conviction that peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific maritime domain underpin the security and prosperity of the region," the leaders said. Rubio later wrote on X, "The Quad remains a priority, and we will meet again later this year."

Later, Rubio met Jaishankar, and the two discussed regional matters, the Iran war and the still unfinished trade agreement meant to lower US President Donald Trump's tariffs on Indian goods, according to a US State Department spokesperson. "The Secretary and Minister Jaishankar agreed on the importance of finalising the interim trade deal, which is almost complete," spokesperson Tommy Pigott said.

Rubio was also scheduled to meet Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the meetings at a heavily secured convention complex by Manila Bay. Newly appointed British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband was arriving on Wednesday, his office said. The meetings in Manila have centred on concerns over maritime security, regional stability and the economic impact of conflict, with Rubio using the platform to underline both US support for ASEAN and the importance Washington places on the Quad and its talks with India.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends