Key facts
- Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei denied that the Yemeni Houthis are proxies of Iran.
- Baghaei stated that the Houthis are an independent Yemeni actor that makes its own decisions.
- Baghaei accused US Secretary of State Marco Rubio of lying about the Houthis' status.
- Baghaei attributed regional instability to US military interventions and hegemonic policies.
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated the US would continue to target Iranian oil tankers in retaliation for attacks on its warships.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei on Wednesday denied claims that the Yemeni Houthi movement acts as a proxy for Iran. Baghaei specifically accused US Secretary of State Marco Rubio of lying about the Houthis' status, asserting they are an independent Yemeni actor that makes its own decisions.
Baghaei further stated that the root causes of instability in the region stem from US military interventions and hegemonic policies. He suggested that if Washington genuinely desired peace, it should end its "malign and destabilizing interventions in our region."
Rubio, speaking on Wednesday, had stated that the US would continue to target Iranian oil tankers as retaliation for attacks on its warships, aiming to "strangle" Tehran economically. He claimed that for every Iranian tanker targeted, the US would respond in kind.
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