According to a report by Al Jazeera on July 23, 2026, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described Iran as “a country run by radical clerics,” arguing that the country’s leadership is disconnected from the economic challenges facing its people. He said the current leadership has failed to use the nation’s resources to improve the lives of its citizens.
Rubio said the Iranian government is undermining its own future through its policies and leadership. “They are destroying their country,” he said, adding: “Iran can be the richest country in the Middle East if they wanted to be.”
The US secretary of state also accused Tehran of directing its financial resources toward supporting armed groups across the region rather than investing in domestic development. He claimed the government prioritises backing regional allies and militant organisations over strengthening Iran’s economy and improving public welfare.
“But instead they take their money, and they use it and they give it to Hezbollah, they give it to Hamas, they give it to the Houthis. They give it to Shia militias. They give it to sponsored terrorism all over the world,” Rubio said.
He maintained that Washington’s main objective remains preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Rubio stressed that the United States believes a nuclear-armed Iran would pose a serious threat to regional and global security.
Rubio concluded that the primary focus of the US is “a denuclearised Iran”.
“They cannot have nuclear weapons; I mean, imagine what they would do to the world….See More