Rubio: Iran Pressure Campaign Working, No Need for Major Strikes

Secretary of State Marco Rubio says U.S. sanctions and the naval blockade on Iran are working well enough that President Donald Trump does not need to return to major combat operations, according to Reuters. Rubio made the remarks Tuesday to reporters in Paris after two days of meetings with Group of Seven allies, Reuters reported.

“We don’t need to conduct military strikes if we’re achieving the same objective through economic means and economic pressure. That’s not stalemate,” Rubio said, as quoted by Reuters.

“It’s not a stalemate. You call it a stalemate.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio pushes back after a reporter questions why a stalemate in the Iran war would benefit the United States.

Rubio points to U.S. sanctions and the blockade on Iran, arguing the economic pressure… pic.twitter.com/siNHEbecZH

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“It’s Not a Stalemate”

Rubio repeatedly pushed back when reporters suggested that holding off on military action amounted to a stalemate or status quo, according to Reuters. “The economic pain that is being inflicted on Iran right now is extraordinary, and it compounds. It’s growing every day,” he said, Reuters reported. “Never has Iran ever faced the inability to sell energy in the global market like they are today.”

Rubio told G7 allies that “the economic campaign is so devastating that right now there is no need for major combat operations,” and added that “the economic pressure on Iran is going to get even worse,” according to Al Jazeera. He also pressed allies to help protect shipping around the Strait of Hormuz, where he said U.S. forces would stay, Al Jazeera reported.

Trump: “Locked and Loaded”

Rubio’s comments followed Trump’s remarks on Monday, after the president hosted Qatar’s prime minister at the White House, Reuters reported. “At this point, taking the military action doesn’t seem to be a very necessary thing. But we’re locked and loaded, ready to go for any reason that changes,” Trump said, according to Reuters.

Trump also said Iran is “talking to us, and they’re talking very politely,” Fox News reported. Rubio said the United States remains open to diplomacy but called Iran’s current demands “totally unrealistic,” according to Al Jazeera. “We expect that could change, and if it does, we’re prepared for diplomacy,” Rubio said, Al Jazeera reported.

Tehran Says No Talks

Iran’s top security official, Mohsen Rezaei, said there are currently no negotiations between Tehran and Washington, Fox News reported, citing his remarks on the pro-Iran broadcaster Al Mayadeen. Rezaei said any new U.S. attacks would be met by targeting U.S. bases “far away,” Fox News reported, citing Reuters.

Rezaei also said none of Iran’s enriched uranium would leave the country, according to Fox News. Tehran’s demands include lifting sanctions imposed after the collapse of a June memorandum of understanding, reducing the U.S. military presence in the region and releasing frozen Iranian funds, Al Jazeera reported.

Qatar’s foreign ministry said Tuesday that Doha is “working tirelessly” in its mediation efforts and has received positive reactions from both sides, Al Jazeera reported.

Sources

• Reuters via Al-Monitor
• Al Jazeera
• Fox News
• The Jerusalem Post
• Fox News on X

Compiled from Fox News.