Rubio: US open to diplomacy, but Iran not serious about talks

The US remains open to talks with Iran, says US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, but Iran is not meeting its commitments.

“The United States is always committed to diplomacy,” says Rubio at the ASEAN summit in the Philippines.

“The problem we’re having right now is that they’re not serious about talks,” he continues. “If they’re serious, we’re serious. If they’re not, then we will do what is necessary to protect our interests and also the interests of our allies.”

“The United States remains open and willing to engage in positive negotiations and talks so long as the commitments that are made are kept,” says the top US diplomat. “When those commitments are not kept, which is what’s happened in this particular case, then there will be consequences. And that has to happen.”

He says that Iranian leaders are going to continue to engage in hostile rhetoric, but “what we’re interested in is whether or not ships are moving.”

Rubio also insists that the MOU between the US and Iran actually “contemplates a conversation around proxies,” though it does not mention the issue directly.

“No doubt that that is a topic that will have to be discussed,” he says, days after Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels began threatening to attack Saudi tankers in the Red Sea.

Rubio says that there is “zero support” among Gulf allies for any kind of tolls or fees in the Strait of Hormuz. “That is not going to happen,” he says.

“We will not be making any decisions or commitments that in any way undermines the prosperity, stability, or the security of our Gulf partners,” he adds.