Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Trump administration is pursuing two separate tracks in its dealings with Iran: a long-term agreement to eliminate the country's nuclear program, and a shorter-term arrangement to keep the Strait of Hormuz open for international shipping.
Rubio stressed that preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons remains the administration's primary goal. "I think there's two things to talk about when there's a deal," He said. "There's the big deal, which is the one that has to do with their nuclear ambitions."
He reaffirmed President Donald Trump's position on the matter: "They can never have a nuclear weapon. The President's been clear about that. So the denuclearization of Iran is the ultimate deal."
On the immediate front, Rubio said the administration is focusing on protecting maritime traffic through the strategically important Strait of Hormuz. "I think the immediate deal, the one that you see a lot of focus on, is the Straits," He said. "There are ships moving through the Straits. There's oil moving right now through the Straits, and the Straits are open."
The United States is involved in discussions between Oman and Iran aimed at improving security for commercial vessels transiting the strait while longer-term nuclear negotiations continue. "I think that there's a conversation and a negotiation that we are involved in between Oman and Iran on how more ships can be able to go through there safely in the short term as we move towards these longer-term talks about denuclearization," Rubio said.
While no final agreement has been reached, Rubio indicated the talks have shown promise. "There's been progress made in those talks, but not finality yet. We're hoping that will happen very shortly."