US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has accused Iran of making “outrageous and ridiculous” demands as efforts to reach a lasting resolution to the Middle East war appear to have stalled.
Speaking to reporters in Florida on Sunday evening before heading to Paris for the G7 foreign ministers’ meeting, Rubio said the two sides remained far apart on negotiations after Tehran proposed shortening the timetable for resuming negotiations from seven to two days.
Rubio said President Donald Trump would prefer to resolve “this and all other issues diplomatically” but added that “sometimes, unfortunately, that’s not possible.”
Energy prices fell Monday morning after President Trump said Sunday that further strikes were “highly unlikely” if negotiations progressed toward a solid deal.
Brent crudethe international price benchmark, was down 0.75% at $97.58 a barrel as of 5:25 a.m. ET. Meanwhile, the United States West Texas Intermediate Futures for December delivery were trading down 0.42% at $90.45.
Trump said in a CNN interview before Rubio’s comments that a resumption of hostilities in the more than eight-month-old conflict was unlikely, provided negotiations to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions and reopen the Strait of Hormuz could progress.
Brent crude.
“I wouldn’t say we’re on the verge of a breakthrough,” Rubio said. “So far it hasn’t been very productive because the Iranian demands are not only unacceptable but, in some cases, outrageous and ridiculous and really unrealistic.”
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Monday that Tehran wants U.S. sanctions lifted and the war on all fronts ended before negotiations begin.
Gn headline
