Rubio vows to keep 'devastating' costs on Iran
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Sowetan
At a G7 foreign ministers' meeting in Paris, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington would continue to impose 'devastating' economic costs on Tehran rather than resume war. According to four G7 diplomats, he called Iran’s authorities 'crazy', while President Trump has postponed new military strikes.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday, at a meeting of G7 foreign ministers in Paris, that Washington would continue to impose 'devastating' economic costs on Iran, according to four G7 diplomats quoted by Reuters, who requested anonymity. Two of them reported that Marco Rubio had described Iran’s authorities as 'crazy'.
According to these diplomats, Marco Rubio explained that the current policy of strict economic sanctions is working and limiting Tehran’s capacity to finance its regional activities and its allies. This statement comes a day after President Donald Trump said he wanted to postpone new military strikes against Iran, following appeals from countries in the region.
The Qatari Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, a key intermediary with Iran, made an unscheduled stop in Paris after his talks with Donald Trump in Washington. According to two European diplomats, he said he was cautiously optimistic about the possibility of a diplomatic solution. According to one diplomat, Vice-President JD Vance prefers an agreement with Iran, but Donald Trump currently believes a viable agreement is not possible.
