'No breakthrough': Rubio says Iran 'killed' the US deal as UN talks fail to move forward

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday, September 23, that US-Iran talks held on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly did not produce a major breakthrough.

He described the meeting as a continuation of earlier conversations and said the United States does not view the memorandum of understanding reached with Iran earlier this year as a current option.

Rubio said the US delegation was led by Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. 

He did not provide details of Washington’s current demands but said preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon remained the central issue in discussions with Tehran.

Marco Rubio describes talks as continuation

Rubio said the meeting was not a new negotiating process but continued discussions that had taken place previously.

He did not announce a new agreement or say that the two sides had reached an understanding on outstanding issues. 

The talks took place as US and Iranian officials remained divided over the conditions for further negotiations.

He also said the United States would continue military escorts through the Strait of Hormuz because of threats to energy shipments through the waterway.

Earlier MOU no longer on the table

Referring to the arrangement and the events that followed, Rubio said, “They killed the MOU, they strangled it.”

Rubio linked the collapse of the understanding to Iranian strikes that preceded a temporary ceasefire in June.

The statement leaves the United States continuing discussions with Iranian representatives without announcing a new framework to replace the earlier MOU.

Washington repeats nuclear demand

Rubio said the United States continues to focus on preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.

“The core issue here is that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon,” Rubio said.

He added that the United States raises the issue during every interaction with Iranian officials.

Marco Rubio questions Iran's negotiating authority

Rubio also raised questions about whether Iranian representatives involved in negotiations can make final commitments on behalf of the country.

“The ultimate decision-making in Iran lies in the hands of people that are strong believers in Iran, the revolution,” Rubio said.

He said this makes negotiations difficult because representatives can discuss possible agreements but must take them back to Iran’s revolutionary leadership.

“You can deal with the people that represent Iran, the state, and you can reach agreement on some points,” Rubio said.

He added that proposed agreements ultimately have to be taken back to the leadership, where previous efforts have failed.