If the United States and Iran fail toarrive at a deal, Washington may impose additional pressure on Tehran, hinted US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He, however, said that the final decision rests with US President Donald Trump. Little progress has been made since a fragile ceasefire took effect between the US and Iran in early April.
“That’s POTUS’ decision to make… the level of sanctions on Iran is extraordinary, the level of pressure on Iran is extraordinary, and I think more can be brought to bear," said Rubio in an interview with Fox News.
Iran has reportedly given the United States a new proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, bringing an end to the conflict. The new deal proposes to postpone the nuclear negotiations for later stages, reported Axios, citing a US official and two sources with knowledge.
When asked about the same, Rubio said Iran has a different view of the strategic waterway than most of the rest of the world. “What they mean by opening the straits is, yes, the straits are open, as long as you coordinate with Iran, get our permission, or we’ll blow you up and you pay us,” Rubio said.
“That’s not opening the straits. Those are international waterways. They cannot normalise, nor can we tolerate them trying to normalise, a system in which the Iranians decide who gets to use an international waterway and how much you have to pay them to use it.”
On the proposal suggesting pushing the discussions on its nuclear program, Rubio said, “There’s no doubt in my mind that at some point in the future if this radical clerical regime remains in charge in Iran, they will decide they want a nuclear weapon.” “That fundamental issue still has to be confronted,” he said. “That still remains the core issue here.”
The first round of negotiations between Iran and the US, led by US Vice President JD Vance and Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, ended without a deal, with nuclear issue being a core sticking point.
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Apoorva Shukla is a journalist at Times Now, where she thrives on dissecting political developments both at home and abroad. A graduate of Delhi Univ...View More
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