Rubio Says Iran's Demands Are 'Outrageous' as Outreach Stalls

Marco Rubio isn't sugarcoating it. The US Secretary of State says recent contacts with Iran have been "unproductive," and that Tehran's demands are "simply unacceptable" — "in some cases outrageous." Washington, he added, is still willing to explore a diplomatic settlement "if there is a chance."

That chance looks thin right now. President Donald Trump said he's "highly unlikely" to order fresh strikes on Iran if talks show progress, but a deal remains a distant speck while the US leans harder on economic pressure and Tehran keeps promising to hit back if attacked.

Trump turned up the heat on Sunday, announcing on Truth Social that Task Force Iron Gate is now "in full force and effect" in Iran. Paired with what he called "history's greatest Naval Blockade," he claimed "very little gets into, or out of, Iran." CENTCOM has said the task force exists to stop Tehran from moving advanced weapons, dual-use technologies and other sanctioned goods across its land borders and the Caspian Sea.

The region isn't exactly quiet. Iran's state news agency IRNA reported four explosions on Qeshm Island on Sunday, with state media saying "some points on the island have been hit" and local authorities staying silent. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps also claimed it safely downed seven US reconnaissance drones over the past two weeks, according to the outlet.

Then there's the water. Iran's navy said a "non-compliant" oil tanker caught fire after striking a naval mine east of the Strait of Hormuz, claiming the vessel was trying to transit without authorization and had its identification systems switched off. Tehran warned the strait will stay shut to ships "violating" its rules until "all threats were removed" — a promise that keeps one of the world's busiest oil chokepoints squarely in the crosshairs.