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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that China has indicated it is "not in favour" of militarising the Strait of Hormuz or introducing any tolling mechanism as done by Iran during the course of the conflict in West Asia.
Speaking in an interview with NBC News on Thursday, during US President Trump's two-day state visit to China, Rubio reiterated Washington's stance that it is not seeking Beijing's assistance on Iran-related matters. "The Chinese side said they are not in favour of militarising the Straits of Hormuz, and they're not in favour of a tolling system. And that's our position. We don't; we will never support an Iranian tolling system in the Straits of Hormuz, nor do we think they have a right to put mines in international waters," Rubio told NBC News. His remarks come despite Trump stating that his Chinese counterpart offered to help Washington on the Iran issue, noting that Beijing "would like to see a deal made". "President Xi would like to see a deal made. He said, 'If I can be of any help at all, I would like to be of help.' Anybody that buys that much oil has obviously got some kind of relationship, but he'd like to see the Hormuz Strait open," Trump said on Friday. When asked what Trump's request to Xi Jinping regarding Iran was, Rubio responded that no assistance was sought from Beijing. "He didn't ask him for anything. We're not asking for China's help. We don't need their help," he said. Rubio further clarified that the US raised the issue during discussions to outline its position on Iran's nuclear ambitions and regional activities. "We raised the issue to make clear what our position is: Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon," he said, alleging that Tehran had been developing extensive missile and drone capabilities alongside its nuclear programme. He also said Iran was attempting to leverage regional maritime routes for strategic advantage, adding, "In response to that, Iran has decided that they're going to take an international waterway and turn it into theirs and charge tolls for it. We're not going to allow that to happen." (ANI)
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