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Rubio Signals No New Iran Strikes 'For Now'
(MENAFN) US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has told a number of allied foreign ministers that Washington does not anticipate launching fresh strikes on Iran "for the time being," pointing instead to a strategy built around economic and maritime pressure, according to a Tuesday report from Axios.
Citing a US official and a second source familiar with the matter, Axios reported that Rubio laid out the Trump administration's current thinking on Iran during recent phone calls with foreign counterparts, telling them the emphasis would shift toward tightening economic pressure through a US naval blockade and a fresh sanctions push unveiled by the Treasury Department.
The administration is also working to push as much Iranian oil as possible through the Strait of Hormuz and onto global energy markets, the report said.
One US official told Axios that Rubio was explicit that Washington has no plans to resume large-scale combat operations, though he stopped short of ruling out military strikes should Iran strike first.
A second US official pointed to the US Navy's clearing of mines from the Strait of Hormuz as a possible turning point in the conflict, arguing it had substantially stripped Iran of one of its key sources of leverage.
Axios also reported that, per one US official, the current strategy could hold steady until after the US midterm elections — after which a renewed military campaign could once again be on the table.
Earlier Tuesday, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi disputed claims that US forces had cleared mines from the waterway or were preparing to deploy minesweeping vessels to the region.
"If the United States claims that the mines have been completely cleared, why doesn't a US ship pass through?" Gharibabadi said. "If they have cleared them, why don't they pass? No one except Iran knows the location of these mines."
He warned that any US minesweeping vessels entering the area would be treated as targets.
"If US mine-sweepers enter the region, they will become targets for us," Gharibabadi said, adding that comments from US President Donald Trump regarding mine clearance were intended solely to reassure markets.
Citing a US official and a second source familiar with the matter, Axios reported that Rubio laid out the Trump administration's current thinking on Iran during recent phone calls with foreign counterparts, telling them the emphasis would shift toward tightening economic pressure through a US naval blockade and a fresh sanctions push unveiled by the Treasury Department.
The administration is also working to push as much Iranian oil as possible through the Strait of Hormuz and onto global energy markets, the report said.
One US official told Axios that Rubio was explicit that Washington has no plans to resume large-scale combat operations, though he stopped short of ruling out military strikes should Iran strike first.
A second US official pointed to the US Navy's clearing of mines from the Strait of Hormuz as a possible turning point in the conflict, arguing it had substantially stripped Iran of one of its key sources of leverage.
Axios also reported that, per one US official, the current strategy could hold steady until after the US midterm elections — after which a renewed military campaign could once again be on the table.
Earlier Tuesday, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi disputed claims that US forces had cleared mines from the waterway or were preparing to deploy minesweeping vessels to the region.
"If the United States claims that the mines have been completely cleared, why doesn't a US ship pass through?" Gharibabadi said. "If they have cleared them, why don't they pass? No one except Iran knows the location of these mines."
He warned that any US minesweeping vessels entering the area would be treated as targets.
"If US mine-sweepers enter the region, they will become targets for us," Gharibabadi said, adding that comments from US President Donald Trump regarding mine clearance were intended solely to reassure markets.
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