Rubio walks back threats of additional military strikes in Venezuela, says Iran is weaker скачать в хорошем качестве

Rubio walks back threats of additional military strikes in Venezuela, says Iran is weaker

(28 Jan 2026) RESTRICTION SUMMARY: POOL Washington DC - 28 January 2026 1. Cutaway of Senate hearing 2. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dave McCormick, (R) Pennsylvania: "The deaths in Iran, and the horrible atrocities are being committed. Can you give us some sense of we see reports of thousands, tens of thousands. What's the State Department's best estimate of what's happened on the ground?" 3. SOUNDBITE (English) Marco Rubio, US Secretary of State: "Well, I don't, in the thousands for certain. and look, I think regimes, including that one in Iran, have learned that when you start shooting people in the head with snipers, it's effective. I mean, it works and they've done it and it's horrifying. And that's what we've seen. That regime is probably weaker than it has ever been. And the core problem they face, unlike the protests you saw in the past on some other topics, is that they don't have a way to address the core complaints of the protesters, which is that there are economy's in collapse. And the reason why their economy's in collapse is because they spend all their money and all their resources building weapons and sponsoring terrorist groups around the world instead of reinvesting it back into their society. And as a result of taking on massive global sanctions, which has isolated their economy and their country. And so that's what the Iranian people are demanding, is that they stop doing that and start caring about them and get these sanctions off them, and this regime is unwilling to do it. So the core challenges, the the, the protests may have ebbed, but they will spark up again in the future because this regime, unless they are willing to change and or leave, have no way of addressing the legitimate and consistent complaints of the people of Iran who deserve better." ++SEPARATED BY BLACK++ 4. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Chris Murphy, (D) Connecticut: "In your testimony, you reserved the right to use force again in the future. If the Venezuelan government isn't complying with your requests. So if, for instance, they refuse to give you access to the oil in the future, if they said, we're just going to keep it for ourselves, would this cause you to consider military action? And do you concede that if you're using military action simply to try to compel cooperation from the government, you absolutely need congressional authorization for that?" 5. SOUNDBITE (English) Marco Rubio, US Secretary of State: "Look, the president never rules out his options as commander in chief to protect the national interest of the United States. I can tell you right now with full certainty, we are not postured to, nor do we intend or expect to have to take any military action in Venezuela at any time. The only military presence you'll see in Venezuela is our Marine guards at an embassy. Okay. That is our goal. That is our expectation. And that is what everything that outlines towards. That said, if an Iranian drone factory pops up and threatens our forces in the region, the president retains the option to eliminate that threat." 6. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Chris Murphy, (D) Connecticut: "I'm I'm asking a more specific question, because in your testimony, you suggest that you would use force to compel cooperation, for instance, with oil sales. Do you agree that you have to come to Congress to get authorization if you were simply using force to try to compel, cooperation?" 7. SOUNDBITE (English) Marco Rubio, US Secretary of State: 8. Cutaway of Senators during hearing STORYLINE: A month ago, economic woes sparked Iranian protests that broadened into challenging the theocracy. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...