Iran must 'walk away' from all uranium enrichment, Rubio says

Marco Rubio said Iran must stop enrichment, missile development, and terrorism support, and allow US inspectors. Nuclear talks were postponed amid major US-Iran disagreements.

 US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to the media during a refueling stop at Shannon Airport in Shannon, Ireland, March 12, 2025, as he travels from talks with Ukraine in Saudi Arabia to attending a G7 Foreign Ministers meeting in Canada. (photo credit: SAUL LOEB/POOL VIA REUTERS)
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to the media during a refueling stop at Shannon Airport in Shannon, Ireland, March 12, 2025, as he travels from talks with Ukraine in Saudi Arabia to attending a G7 Foreign Ministers meeting in Canada.
(photo credit: SAUL LOEB/POOL VIA REUTERS)

Iran has to 'walk away' from uranium enrichment and long-range missile development and it should allow American inspectors of its facilities, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday as a round of nuclear talks was postponed.

Rubio's comments underscore the major remaining divisions in talks between the countries to resolve the long-running dispute over Iran's nuclear program, with US President Donald Trump threatening to bomb Iran if there is no agreement.

"They have to walk away from sponsoring terrorists, they have to walk away from helping the Houthis (in Yemen), they have to walk away from building long-range missiles that have no purpose to exist other than having nuclear weapons, and they have to walk away from enrichment," Rubio said in a Fox News interview.

Iran has repeatedly said it will not give up its missile program or its uranium enrichment - a process used to make fuel for nuclear power plants but which can also yield material for an atomic warhead.

On Thursday a senior Iranian official told Reuters that the scheduled fourth round of talks due to take place in Rome on Saturday had been postponed and that a new date would be set "depending on the US approach."

 U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends an interview after meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, , U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, and U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, at Diriyah Palace (credit:  REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/Pool REFILE )
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends an interview after meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, , U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, and U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, at Diriyah Palace (credit: REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/Pool REFILE )

Iran would have to accept American inspection

Rubio said Iran should import enriched uranium for its nuclear power program rather than enriching it to any level.

"If you have the ability to enrich at 3.67% it only takes a few weeks to get to 20% then 60% and then the 80 and 90% that you need for a weapon," he said.

Iran has said it has a right to enrich uranium under the terms of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. It denies wanting to build a nuclear bomb.

Rubio also said Iran would have to accept that Americans could be involved in any inspection regime and that inspectors would require access to all facilities, including military ones.