US can see the “finish line” in the Iran war, now in its fifth week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday. He added that the US will have to re-examine its ties with NATO once the conflict ends.
“We can see the finish line. It’s not today, it’s not tomorrow, but it is coming,” Rubio told Fox News Channel’s Hannity show.
The war erupted on 28 February when the US and Israel struck Iran. Tehran retaliated by launching its own assaults on Israel and Gulf states hosting American bases, reports Reuters.
Joint US-Israeli strikes inside Iran, alongside Israeli attacks in Lebanon, have killed thousands and displaced millions. The fighting has also driven up oil prices and rattled global markets.
Rubio disclosed that messages are passing between Washington and Tehran, raising the prospect of a face-to-face meeting.
“There are messages being exchanged, there are talks going on. There is the potential for direct meeting at some point,” Rubio said.
President Donald Trump – who has offered shifting timelines and goals for the war, from toppling Iran’s government to degrading its military and regional sway – said the US could halt its military strikes against Iran within two to three weeks.
Rubio insisted that “there’s nothing any government is doing, or any country in the world is doing now to help Iran that is in any way impeding our mission.”
He added that Washington will have to re-examine its relations with Nato after the Iran war. “Ultimately, that’s a decision for the president to make, and he’ll have to make it,” Rubio said.
“But I do think, unfortunately, we are going to have to reexamine whether or not this alliance that has served this country well for a while is still serving that purpose, or has it now become a one-way street where America is simply in a position to defend Europe, but when we need the help of our allies, they’re going to deny us basing rights, and they’re going to deny us overflight,” he added in reference to the use of military bases.
European leaders have refused to become directly involved in military action against Iran.
