Secretary of State Marco Rubio: US to Continue Economic Pressure on Iran

NEW YORK, September 10. /TASS/. The US does not believe that Iran’s foreign trade ties and various forms of aid from other countries will alter the balance of power between Washington and Tehran, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said during a trip to Ecuador.

"We don’t believe anybody is giving Iran anything that’s changing the dynamics or the parameters of what we’re seeing," the Associated Press news agency quoted the top US diplomat as saying.

Rubio added that the US will "continue to strangle" Iran economically and restrict its foreign trade and financial ties.

The US and Israel launched a war against Iran on February 28. In June, Washington and Tehran, with Islamabad acting as mediator, signed a memorandum of understanding providing for an immediate cessation of hostilities on all fronts, including in Lebanon. However, in the early morning hours of July 8, the US resumed large-scale strikes against Iran, accusing it of violating the terms of the agreements reached on the Strait of Hormuz. About 25% of the world's oil trade and approximately 20% of its liquefied natural gas pass through the strait. The US administration then effectively signaled that it would stop using large-scale military force against Iran and try to economically strangle the country through sanctions instead.