US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday that Iran was "paying the price" for repeatedly failing to honour agreements with Washington.
"These people make deals and then they break it almost immediately or they decide, 'Oh, let's change the deal.' That's not how deals work," Rubio told reporters in the Philippines, on the sidelines of the ASEAN meeting.
"So now they're paying the price for it. And maybe they'll change their mind here over the next few days as they continue to suffer great losses."
Rubio later claimed Iran was "not ready to make a deal," accusing its leadership of repeatedly reneging on agreements.
"Every time these people do a deal, they either break it or, after they make it, they want to change the deal," he said, claiming Tehran was "begging" to resume talks with Washington.
He argued that Iran would eventually return to negotiations because "the price they're paying is very high."
Referring to President Donald Trump's approach, Rubio said the administration's policy was "a head for an eye."
"The price will continue to get higher every single night until they come to their senses. Right now, apparently, they haven't come to their senses," he said, adding that Iran was already "paying a very heavy price."
Houthis 'should stay out of it'
Rubio also urged Yemen's Houthi group to avoid becoming further involved in the regional conflict, claiming it had been "suckered into" the war by Tehran.
"I hope that they'll stop. They shouldn't really do that. They got suckered into this by the Iranians," he said.
"The Houthis largely were smart and stayed out of all this throughout the conflict, but they now apparently have gotten themselves suckered into this, going after Saudi Arabia and their ships."
Rubio said he hoped tensions would ease, adding that the Houthis "should stay out of it, and they should stop."
On Ukraine war
Rubio also said the United States remained prepared to play a "constructive role" in helping to end the war in Ukraine following talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the ASEAN foreign ministers' meeting in Manila.
President Donald Trump had made clear that Washington was ready to help facilitate an end to what Rubio described as a "senseless war" if the opportunity arose, he said.
"We had a good conversation, a frank conversation," Rubio said of his meeting with Lavrov, declining to discuss the substance of the talks.
"The United States, the president's been clear that ... we are prepared to play a constructive role in bringing about an end to a senseless war, and we're ready to do that," he said.
Rubio said the war had exacted a heavy toll, citing civilian deaths and Russian strikes on Kiev. He added that while both Russia and Ukraine had an incentive to end the conflict, the challenge remained finding a settlement "that both sides can accept."
"I think it is a very bloody war," Rubio said. "I think both sides should have an incentive to bring it to an end.”
