US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that the United States would uphold its commitments under its defense agreement with Saudi Arabia when asked about a military campaign by the Houthis.
Rubio also addressed the diplomatic exchanges between the United States and Iran, as indirect contacts took place on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
“We understand the Strait issue,” Rubio told reporters, adding that the United States would continue to defend and keep open strategic waterways. He said President Donald Trump has a number of options available, including military options.
A deal with Iran would require “hard work over a period of time,” Rubio said, while reiterating that Trump also retains military options.
Rubio described Tuesday’s discussions between US and Iranian officials as largely an exchange of ideas and messages. His comments referred to meetings involving US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who met with mediators to discuss a possible agreement to end the Iran conflict.
Trump says US, Iran moving toward settlement as Tehran links Hormuz reopening to deal
US President Trump said Tuesday at the United Nations that US officials had held a “very good” three-hour meeting with the Iranian delegation.
He said Washington and Tehran were moving toward a settlement, while a senior Iranian official said Tehran could reopen the Strait of Hormuz within days if the US eased military pressure and lifted its blockade on Iranian ports.
Iranian officials later said Tehran was reviewing the US response to its proposal to end hostilities, but that significant differences remained between the two sides as diplomatic efforts continued, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Wednesday.
The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the lifting of the US naval blockade on Iran were among the issues discussed during Tuesday’s indirect talks with Washington, the official said.
Iran says it clarified conditions for resuming diplomacy with US during Qatar-mediated talks
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on X that another round of “message exchanges and clarifications” took place between Iran and the US through Qatari mediators on Tuesday.
Baghaei said Iran had clarified its conditions for resuming diplomacy during the two-hour exchange, including an understanding on ensuring safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz between the two coastal countries.
Iran’s stated conditions also include the lifting of US sanctions, including the naval blockade, an end to the war, and the release of frozen Iranian assets.