Rubio says Iran ‘begging’ for a deal with US but not ready to make one

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday in Manila, Philippines, on the sidelines of an ASEAN foreign ministers meeting that Iran is privately pressing Washington for a deal to end the war, but Tehran is not yet “ready” to accept one.

“Iran is begging us, both directly and indirectly, ‘Let’s do a deal. Let’s talk,’” Rubio told reporters. “The problem with Iran is every time they make a deal, the people in charge either break it or they want to change it. So it looks like they’re not ready to make a deal, so they’re going to continue to pay a price, and every night the price gets higher and higher.”

Rubio described Iran as “a country run by radical clerics”, calling them “oblivious” to its economic problems. He claimed Iran could be the richest country in the Middle East but instead spends money on Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthis, Shia militias, and sponsors terrorism worldwide.

Asked about Iranian officials describing their military policy as “an eye for an eye”, Rubio said President Donald Trump’s approach was “a head for an eye”. He warned Iran “will pay a very heavy price for the things they are doing”, claiming Iran’s industrial infrastructure was being “decimated”, resulting in “billions” of dollars in damage.

Rubio said Washington’s central objective remains a denuclearised Iran. “Our number one interest and the threat they pose to the world is these lunatics in possession of a nuclear weapon, and that’s not going to happen.” He also denied Russia has been helping Iran with its weapons programmes and said Yemen’s Houthi movement had been “snookered” by Iran into targeting Saudi Arabia-linked shipping.

Last month, the US signed a memorandum of understanding with Iran, which Tehran says Washington has repeatedly violated. Both sides indicate the agreement is effectively over. For the past 12 nights, the US has launched strikes on Iran aimed at degrading its ability to hit vessels in regional waters, but Iran says civilian infrastructure has been hit. The latest strikes hit a passenger terminal at the Shalamcheh border crossing with Iraq, killing two and injuring others.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei on Thursday rejected any justification for US strikes on infrastructure, writing on X that targeting bridges and power plants amounts to unlawful reprisal and collective punishment. He argued that citing superiors’ orders does not shield perpetrators from criminal liability, pointing to the US War Crimes Act. Iran, he said, “stands firm and resolute against lawlessness.”

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Zeidon Alkinani, founding director of the Arab Perspectives Institute, said Iran uses “very similar rhetoric” to Washington’s. “They also want a deal, and the Americans are not serious about a deal,” he said. “This just indicates that the tit for tat will continue in parallel to the actual conflict on the ground.” On the Houthis, Alkinani noted the group’s recent silence on Iran, suggesting they may want to reassess, and that Rubio’s comments “might indicate a US willingness to finally negotiate with the Houthis as if the Houthis indicate that they want a new deal that is autonomous” from Tehran.