US secretary of state calls straits economic equivalent of nuclear weapons

NEW YORK, April 28. /TASS/. Control over strategic straits is effectively the economic equivalent of a nuclear weapon, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated. "The straits is basically the equivalent of an economic nuclear weapon," he said in an interview with Fox News, commenting on the situation around Iran. On April 17, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the Strait of Hormuz was open for commercial vessels. US President Donald Trump said that Washington will continue the naval blockade of the Islamic Republic until the parties sign a final deal. After that, the Navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC, elite army units) said Iran had blocked the strait until the US naval blockade was completely lifted. The IRGC called on the shipowners to comply exclusively with Iran’s recommendations and described Trump’s statements about the situation in the Strait of Hormuz as "not credible." About a fifth of global oil exports pass through the Strait of Hormuz.