US Defence Secretary Marco Rubio has warned that Iran's thousands of ballistic missiles and drones pose a significant threat to American personnel in the region, as tensions between Washington and Tehran escalate. Speaking to the Senate on Wednesday, Rubio said the Iranian government was 'probably weaker than it has ever been' since the 1979 revolution, but cautioned that its military capabilities remain dangerous.
Rubio's comments came after President Donald Trump issued a stark warning to Iran on social media, saying time was running out for a deal on its nuclear programme. Trump said a US naval armada, led by the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, was moving towards Iran 'with great power, enthusiasm and purpose' and was prepared to 'rapidly fulfil its missions with speed and violence if necessary'.
Trump urged Iran to 'come to the Table' and negotiate a fair agreement that would prevent it from developing nuclear weapons. He referenced a previous military operation, 'Operation Midnight Hammer', which he described as a 'major destruction of Iran', and warned that the next attack would be 'far worse'.
European diplomats have been bracing for a potential crisis over the weekend, with signs of nervousness from Israel about the scale of possible Iranian reprisals. In a social media post, a senior adviser to Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, warned that any US military action would be considered the start of a war, prompting an 'immediate, comprehensive and unprecedented' response targeting Tel Aviv and its supporters.
Gulf states and Turkey have been mediating between the two sides, but Tehran has insisted it will not negotiate under duress or with preconditions. Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, said at the World Economic Forum in Davos that any deal must address Iran's missile programme, enrichment activities, non-state actor proxies, and its stockpile of nuclear material.
Rubio also acknowledged the possibility of regime change in Iran, but said it would require 'a lot of careful thinking' if that eventuality ever presented itself. Activists estimate that more than 30,000 people were killed during recent unrest in Iran.
