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Secretary Marco Rubio: diplomacy first but options remain to prevent Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon
Summary
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said diplomacy remains the preference in discussions with Iran, but warned "they can never have a nuclear weapon" and repeated that other options exist if negotiations fail.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefed the cabinet on ongoing efforts with Iran and said the administration prefers diplomacy but will pursue other means if necessary to prevent nuclearization.
"The bottom line is Iran's never gonna have a nuclear weapon," Rubio said, adding that envoys, including named negotiators, are pursuing talks and that he expected to see whether progress could be made "over the next few hours and days." He also described 20 countries signing third-country national agreements to accept deportations, which the State Department sees as a tool to enforce immigration laws associated with border security.
Both the president and Rubio said they would consider agreements multilaterally and tied progress to broader regional engagement, including requests to bring Gulf states into negotiations and to expand the Abraham Accords where appropriate. Reporters asked whether the administration would consider easing sanctions to address humanitarian needs; the president answered categorically that he would not ease sanctions or transfer funds without conditions.
