Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Sunday that the US is open to diplomacy with Iran, as the US military launched a ninth consecutive night of strikes.

“The United States always remains open to a diplomatic solution. We’ve tried multiple times with Iran, and we’ll continue to try. If that door opens, we’ll be happy to see,” Rubio told reporters before departing for Manila, where he will attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit.

Rubio criticized Iran for attacking ships and obstructing the Strait of Hormuz. The memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran reached in June aimed to expand on the ceasefire and get traffic flowing through the key waterway.

“They can’t have an MOU that’s alive if they’re violating the terms of it,” Rubio said, adding, “They continue to send signals that they want to talk, that they want to negotiate, but their behaviour is what we’re responding to, and their behaviour is they’re launching missiles and drones against ships, including tonight.”

Asked by CNN’s Kit Maher about what will happen if diplomatic efforts fail, Rubio replied, “I don’t think it’ll be good for Iran. I mean, Iran’s economy is in shambles.”


-CNN