The United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, extended a hand to Iran this Tuesday upon landing in United Arab Emirates, the first stop of a three-day tour of the Persian Gulf that includes Kuwait and Bahrain, with a double-edged message: economic opportunity if Tehran renounces terrorism, and a warning that regional peace is impossible while its armed groups continue to operate.
"If Iran's leadership decides that they want to be a country, rather than a revolutionary movement that exports terror, they will have the opportunity to do incredible things in Iran," declared Rubio to the press upon arriving in the Emirates.
The Secretary of State specified that these opportunities would include foreign direct investment, similar to that which already benefits other countries in the region, but clarified that it would not involve funds from the U.S. government.
"I'm not promising that this will be the decision they make. I'm saying that if this is the decision they take, there will be opportunities," he added, emphasizing that any progress will depend on advancements in "a number of other security matters that need to be addressed in the coming days."
Regarding the armed groups backed by Tehran, Rubio was unequivocal: “There can be no end to hostilities and conflicts in the region while Iranian intermediaries are launching missiles and drones from Iraq, and are engaging in terrorism as Hamas and Hezbollah have done.”
The secretary linked this issue to the 14-point memorandum of understanding signed on June 17 between Washington and Tehran, arguing that the concept of "complete cessation of hostilities throughout the region" implicitly encompasses the activities of those groups.
"I believe it is covered by the memorandum and is a matter that will be addressed at the appropriate time in these negotiations," he noted.
Rubio also spoke out about the freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas consumption passes.
«No country is allowed to impose tolls or fees on an international waterway», he stated directly regarding the Iranian proposal —backed by Oman— to charge for alleged "security and navigation services" in those waters.
The tour comes at a time of extreme diplomatic fragility. The military conflict between the United States and Israel against Iran, which began on February 28, 2026, led to a ceasefire around April 8, but the negotiation process has been tumultuous since then.
Iran suspended the talks on two occasions —on June 1 and June 19— citing Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon, and the CIA director, John Ratcliffe, warned Trump that intelligence raises “serious doubts” about Iran's willingness to meet the nuclear commitments of the agreement.
In Bahrain, the final stop of the tour, Rubio will meet with the six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, the countries most directly affected by any closure of the Strait of Hormuz and by the instability caused by Tehran's conflict export policy.
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