US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said Washington expects to conclude its military operations in Iran “in the next couple of weeks.”
While speaking after a meeting of G7 foreign ministers in France, Rubio said that the objectives of the campaign were being achieved faster than anticipated and that progress was ahead of schedule, reports BBC.
He added that while US President Donald Trump has claimed Iran is seeking peace talks, a claim Tehran denies, there have been exchanges of messages, though it remains unclear who within Iran’s leadership is still in a position to negotiate.
Since the US and Israel launched their offensive on 28 February, several senior Iranian leaders have been killed. Rubio confirmed that additional American troops are being sent to the region to provide the president with “options.”
Trump and his advisers have consistently said the operation would last four to seven weeks, and Rubio’s timeline aligns with that projection, stressing it was a matter of “weeks, not months.”
Reports suggest Trump has conveyed a 15‑point proposal to end the conflict via Pakistan. Asked whether Iran would respond soon, Rubio said, “We haven’t gotten it yet. We’ve had an exchange of messages and indications from what remains of the Iranian system, but we’re waiting for clarification on who we’d be talking to, what we’d be talking about, and when.”
Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff later expressed hope that meetings could take place “this week,” adding, “We have a 15‑point deal on the table. We expect an answer from them, and it would solve it all.”
Trump himself told reporters he had paused a planned strike on Iran’s power plants to give diplomacy a chance, remarking: “Iran is being decimated. They want to make a deal.”
Meanwhile, Iran accused Israel of attacking nuclear facilities and two of its largest steel plants. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned of a “heavy price,” while the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) vowed retaliation against US and Israeli industrial infrastructure.
The G7 ministers, in their joint statement, emphasized the “absolute necessity” of restoring safe and toll‑free navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has closed in retaliation. Rubio explained that Iran had threatened to impose fees on vessels, and reports indicate the IRGC has already charged some ships for passage. Iranian lawmakers are drafting legislation to formalise such charges.
The Strait of Hormuz is a critical chokepoint, with about 20 percent of global oil and liquefied natural gas passing through it. Its closure has driven energy prices sharply higher and raised fears of economic disruption worldwide.
While Trump has urged NATO allies to send naval escorts, most G7 members—except Japan—have resisted, arguing that ending the conflict is the best way to secure freedom of navigation.
