From PBS NewsHour.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio responded Tuesday to comments by lawmakers that blockading the Strait of Hormuz is “an act of war.”

Answering questions from reporters at a White House press briefing, Rubio called Iran’s effective closure of the strait to non-Iranian ships “crazy.”

“If everyone’s ships are not getting out, your ships are not getting out either,” Rubio said. “That’s not an act of war, that’s a defensive measure. It’s a counter to what they have decided to do.”

The White House briefing came a day after the U.S. announced the launch of Project Freedom, a new effort to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping traffic.

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