US’ Rubio says Iran deal ‘not easy,’ claims Tehran uses ‘pure theology’ in decision-making

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday that reaching an agreement with Iran remains difficult due to the ideological leadership structure in Tehran but emphasized Washington’s willingness to pursue diplomacy, Anadolu reports.

“Doing a deal with Iran is not easy,” Rubio said at a joint press conference with Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban following high-level talks in Budapest that focused on strategic cooperation, energy, and geopolitical coordination.

Iran is governed by “radical Shia clerics” who “make policy decisions on the basis of pure theology,” he claimed.

However, he said Washington is prepared to continue diplomatic engagement, noting: “We’ve always said it’s hard, but we’re going to try. That’s what the president (Donald Trump) is trying.”

“I’m certainly not going to negotiate with Iran here in front of the press and on the stage. Our negotiators are on their way there now. They’ll have meetings. We’ll see what happens,” he said.

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“The president always prefers peaceful outcomes and negotiated outcomes to things,” Rubio added.

“I think there’s an opportunity here to diplomatically reach an agreement that addresses the things we’re concerned about.”

He also underscored Washington’s approach to major global powers, arguing engagement is necessary even amid rivalry.

“It would be crazy… for the United States and China not to have relations and interact with one another,” he said, noting China’s global weight as “a big country” with a vast population, nuclear capabilities, and the world’s second-largest economy.

He acknowledged tensions between Washington and Beijing but emphasized the need to manage them pragmatically.

“Now, two big countries like this, do we have differences? We absolutely do, and we’ll have to manage those differences,” he said.

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