“I heard their foreign minister say, ‘an eye for an eye’. The president’s view is a head for an eye. That’s what it’s gonna be,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday, July 23.
He was speaking at the 59th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in the Philippines, where a reporter asked about Iranian officials using the “eye for an eye” line. Some read the phrase as a threat against President Trump and his family. A day earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had described it as Iran’s defense doctrine. “Any aggression against Iran, including our infrastructure, will compel a powerful and decisive response,” he said.
Rubio was unmoved. “They will pay a very heavy price for the things they are doing. They are already paying a heavy price,” he said. Iran’s industrial infrastructure, he added, was being “decimated,” at a cost of billions of dollars.
No deal without keeping it
Tehran keeps signalling that it wants an agreement, Rubio said, but he doubted it meant it. Each time a deal is reached, in his account, Iran either breaks it or asks for changes after entering it.
“The problem with them is you can’t make a deal with people unless they’re going to keep it,” he said.
He also took a swipe at Iranian messaging. “Despite their tough talk, and their flowery language and stupid LEGO videos they put out — despite all that bravado, Iran is suffering and is gonna suffer more until they come to their senses,” Rubio said.
Twelve days of fighting
The latest round began in early July, after the IRGC attacked commercial vessels near Oman and the Strait of Hormuz. Washington answered forcefully. Hostilities resumed on July 6, and by Rubio’s remarks the exchange of fire between the U.S. military and Iran had gone on for 12 days.
That has put last month’s fragile memorandum of understanding under severe strain. Both Washington and Tehran have indicated the truce has effectively collapsed, MEAWW reported, with the conflict heading toward a possible full-scale war.
