'Plan in place' to mitigate energy shock of Iran conflict: Rubio

The US has a plan to mitigate global energy disruptions as the Iran conflict continues, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in Washington on Monday.

Rubio arrived on Capitol Hill in Washington Monday afternoon to brief the so-called “Gang of Eight” lawmakers on the Trump administration’s ongoing military attack on Iran.

Rubio told reporters before entering the meeting that the administration foresaw the disruptions to Strait of Hormuz shipping and the turmoil in global energy markets it has caused. Attacks on energy infrastructure in the region are also pushing prices of nearly all energy commodities higher.

Partial relief is on the way through actions that Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will begin taking starting Tuesday, Rubio said.

“There is a plan in place,” Rubio said. “We anticipated this could be an issue and Secretary Wright and Bessent will begin to roll out those steps starting tomorrow to mitigate against the impact that could have.”

Rubio provided no specifics but said the administration will begin “rolling out those phases to try to mitigate” against disruptions to global energy shipping.

The Trump administration’s justification for the US and Israeli attack on Iran has shifted since the weekend.

In a Truth Social post, Trump indicated a main objective is the destruction of the government and a change in regime in Tehran, along with the destruction of Iran’s nuclear programme.

On Monday, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Rubio said a primary goal of the military operation is to eliminate any threat Iran can pose to global energy supplies and shipping.

“Our focus is on the destruction of their ballistic missile launchers, their ballistic missile stockpiles, and their ballistic missile manufacturing capability, as well as their one-way attack drones, and their navy because of the threat it poses to global shipping,” Rubio said.

He said the US and Iran are not currently engaged in any formal diplomatic outreach with one another.

Rubio indicated the US was not close to ending the military operation. “The hardest hits are yet to come from the US military,” he said. “The next phase will be even more punishing on Iran than it is right now.”

Energy prices rose sharply during trading this week amid ongoing turmoil across the Middle East and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

A version of this article first appeared in Recharge sister publication Upstream