US secretary of state Marco Rubio on Tuesday said the Trump administration remained open to a peace deal with Iran, but called some of Tehran's demands "absurd" and indicated that Washington would intensify its economic pressure campaign against the Islamic Republic.
His remarks came days after US President Donald Trump said the US military campaign against Iran was "effectively over", adding that Washington wanted to maintain the status quo in the region.
Speaking to reporters in Paris on the sidelines of the G7 Foreign Ministers Meeting, Rubio said the US economic sanctions and naval blockade of Iranian ports had inflicted severe damage on Iran's economy and he had informed allies that there would be no need to resume major combat operations.
The top US diplomat accused the "radical regime of lunatics" of destroying the country by refusing US demands to end the ongoing conflict. When asked about diplomatic efforts, Rubio said the US was open to negotiations but called Tehran's demands "unrealistic".
"Iran would love a deal. The problem is the conditions they continue to place are absurd. Like, they’re not even serious right now. But that could change, certainly. I mean, eventually you have to eat, eventually you have to be able to pay your own fighters and your own security forces and so forth," he remarked.
{{/usCountry}}"Iran would love a deal. The problem is the conditions they continue to place are absurd. Like, they’re not even serious right now. But that could change, certainly. I mean, eventually you have to eat, eventually you have to be able to pay your own fighters and your own security forces and so forth," he remarked.
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US to intensify economic pressure
Rubio said the US campaign was wreaking "devastation" on the Iranian economy and indicated that it was likely to intensify in the coming months.
"The economic pressure is going to get even worse. I mean, understand that these sanctions begin to compound. So, for example, Iran still has a small number of – just a handful of barrels of oil left on the water that got past the blockade when it was the MOU and that brief ceasefire period. Once that dries up, almost all of their oil revenue will dry up," he added.
Rubio also remarked that the Iranian people "deserve better than to be a third-world country, which is where their leadership is taking them."
According to an Axios report, Rubio told G7 allies that Trump had considered resuming the war with Iran or reaching a deal but ultimately chose a third option: strangling the Iranian regime.
Additionally, Rubio also ruled out US reparations to Iran, saying, "We’re not going to pay. Iran is demanding reparations. They should be the ones paying reparations because they’re the ones that have destabilized the region. They’re demanding pallets of cash, which the president made clear is not going to happen."
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Iran slams Rubio's remarks
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi criticised Rubio's remarks on Iran, referring to them as "delusions".
"8 years ago a cartoon character like Pompeo said Iranians must follow White House diktat “if they want to eat”. Today, Rubio—whose fellow Cubans are victims of same policy—repeats that drivel. Forget about the inhumanity. It's the delusions that are producing failed US policy," he said.
Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts to end the US-Iran war gathered pace as Trump said he saw "positive momentum" towards a resolution after initial concerns over an escalation following the Republican Party's resounding defeat in the recent midterm elections.
The leaders of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Qatar have been seeking to persuade Trump against renewed military action. Iran has offered to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days if Washington agreed to a raft of conditions, asserting that only diplomacy and respect can bring an end to the conflict.