Rubio says Iran sanctions and blockade remove need for new US strikes for now

Rubio's case for economic pressure

Marco Rubio, the US Secretary of State, spoke to reporters in Paris on Tuesday, 10 November, after two days of G7 foreign ministers' meetings. He told allies that US sanctions and the naval blockade are working well enough that President Donald Trump does not need to resume large combat operations against Iran. Rubio rejected the claim that holding off on military action would amount to a stalemate or the status quo. He argued that Iran now faces an inability to sell energy on the global market that it has never faced before. Rubio said Trump had received input from regional allies in the Middle East that supports this assessment.

“The economic pain that is being inflicted on Iran right now is extraordinary, and it compounds. It's growing every day.”

Rubio also said Washington has options beyond restarting a wider war or accepting Iran's demands. He said the US remains open to a real agreement, while calling Tehran's current conditions absurd.

Trump holds off on strikes

On Monday, 9 November, Trump said he planned to hold off on military strikes against Iran after appeals from countries in the region. Qatar's prime minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, made the case during White House talks, and he then travelled to Paris for the G7 meeting. After meeting al-Thani, Trump described a positive momentum toward ending the war. In a Truth Social post he called a resumption of strikes unlikely while saying the US remained ready to intervene. Qatar and Pakistan are both acting as mediators in efforts to end the conflict.

Advisers split and midterm fallout

Some of Trump's top advisers prefer economic pressure over strikes, namely newly installed White House chief of staff Stephen Miller and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, according to a person familiar with their thinking. Vice President JD Vance prefers a deal with Iran, but Trump is for now convinced that a tenable deal is not possible, that person said. The White House did not respond to a request for comment. Trump has acknowledged that the Iran war was one reason Republicans lost the midterm congressional elections to the Democrats. Vance was more definitive on the point.

“The reason we lost is the war.”

Vance is seen as a potential successor to Trump when Trump's term ends in two years.

How the war reached this point

The war began on 28 February with US-Israeli air strikes on Iran. Tehran responded with missile and drone attacks on targets in the region and largely closed the Strait of Hormuz, which is important to global oil and liquefied gas trade. In return, the US imposed a naval blockade of Iranian ports. A ceasefire agreement between Washington and Tehran was reached in June, but it collapsed in early July. The US has maintained sanctions against Iran for decades, mostly aimed at oil revenue, weapons components and funding for businesses controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Tehran has weathered those sanctions, but the blockade has inflicted severe economic damage.

Remaining risks

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said the risk of a new military escalation between the US and Iran was not entirely off the table. He said G7 talks devoted much time to Iran-related questions with Rubio and al-Thani, and he welcomed regional efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and reach a political settlement that prevents attacks from resuming. Rubio warned that if Iran crosses certain red lines, the US military, which he called the most capable force in the world, is ready to respond. He also said Iranian oil exports are drying up under the blockade while US authorities work to stop Tehran from getting around the sanctions.