US Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered Iran’s delegation to the UN General Assembly to leave the United States immediately on Monday after negotiations between Washington and Tehran stalled, Axios reported Thursday.
The delegation included Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, Rubio’s Iranian counterpart, who had been involved in indirect negotiations with the United States during his stay in New York.
Although the Iranian officials were expected to leave the United States soon regardless, Rubio’s decision constituted an unusual diplomatic rebuke as efforts to negotiate an end to the US-Iran war failed to produce a breakthrough, according to Axios.
“Secretary Rubio kicked out the Iranian delegation who had overstayed their welcome. The UN General Assembly was over, so it was time for them to go,” a US official told Axios.
Qatari mediators had been attempting to bridge gaps between Washington and Tehran, but neither side was willing to make the concessions necessary for an agreement, according to the report.
White House concludes Iran negotiations at stalemate
The White House believed on Monday morning that progress might still be possible later in the day, Axios reported. By late afternoon, however, US officials concluded that the negotiations had reached a stalemate.
On Monday evening, acting on Rubio’s instructions, the US mission to the UN informed Iran’s mission that Araghchi and the delegation had to leave New York immediately, according to the US official cited by Axios.
Araghchi and other members of the delegation left for the airport several hours later and boarded a flight from New York to Doha at 1:20 a.m. on Tuesday.
A second source familiar with the matter told Axios that the US had demanded the delegation’s departure, but noted that Araghchi was already scheduled to travel back to Tehran on Monday night.
