Richard Marles, Australia’s defence minister, who is in Washington to meet Pete Hegseth, the US defence minister, said in an interview on ABC Australia’s morning program on Thursday: “What we need to see is the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s action to restrict shipping in the Strait of Hormuz is fundamentally inconsistent with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the principle of freedom of navigation, and this course must be opened.”

Marles added: “We want to reduce tensions in the Middle East, but the Strait of Hormuz must be open. Its openness is of very great importance and the global fuel supply chains must return to normal. At present, it is Iran that is trying to limit the passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz, and this is not acceptable.”

Richard Marles, Australia’s defence minister, also said in Washington on Wednesday: “We have said from the outset that countering Iran’s nuclear ambitions is an important step, and this has been at the center of our stance on dealing with Iran since the beginning.”