US Secretary of State: Iran's demands are absurd... Drawing a line on rumors of imminent negotiation breakthrough

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a breakthrough in negotiations with Iran was not imminent.

According to Bloomberg News on the 8th (local time), Secretary Rubio met with reporters in Florida that day and said, "Many countries are continuing to contact Iran with various ideas, but I would not say that a breakthrough is on the horizon."

In particular, he criticized Iran's demands, saying, "Some of them are beyond simply unacceptable, some are absurd, nonsensical, and downright unrealistic."

However, he did not specifically mention which demands were unrealistic.

As a precondition for negotiations, Iran has demanded that the United States lift the maritime blockade of Iranian ports in the Persian Gulf and lift sanctions.

On the other hand, the United States is demanding Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz and make concessions on its nuclear program.

Secretary Rubio's remarks were somewhat different from President Donald Trump's statement in a phone call with CNN that further attacks on Iran were unlikely if negotiations made significant progress.

When asked about the possibility of additional attacks, President Trump responded, "It depends on whether they sign an agreement. It's very unlikely that it will be necessary."

After the U.S. midterm elections, in which the Republican Party was reduced to a minority party in the Senate and House of Representatives, the possibility of a diplomatic solution to the Iran war is emerging again.

Qatar, the main mediator between the United States and Iran, said it was reviewing proposals related to Iran's nuclear activities, and President Trump also recently discussed ways to ease tensions with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

However, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claimed on this day that "there was no activity or movement by mediators" after the U.S. midterm elections.

“It remains to be seen how long it will take the United States to accept the election results and what direction it will choose thereafter,” Aragchi told Iranian state news agency IRNA.