War with Iran to end in few weeks — Rubio

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio gave a forecast on how long the war in Iran will last.

According to Ukrinform, citing Sky News, the United States expects the operation in Iran to be completed within weeks, not months, Rubio told journalists.

"We have objectives and we are very confident we are on the verge of achieving them," he said.

Rubio added that Iran could decide to introduce a system of charging ships for passage through the Strait of Hormuz, and stated that any permanent fee for transit along this route would be "unacceptable."

Responding to a question about ties between Moscow and Tehran, he said that Russia is not doing anything for Iran that would hinder or influence U.S. military operations against the country.

When asked about the possibility of a potential U.S. ground invasion of Iran, the Secretary of State replied: "We can achieve all of our objectives without ground troops. But we are always going to be prepared to give the president maximum optionality and maximum opportunity to adjust to contingencies, should they emerge."

As Ukrinform reported, on February 28, the United States and Israel carried out joint strikes on regime targets in Iran. After that, Iran attacked U.S. bases in Kuwait, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, and Jordan.

Subsequently, the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) confirmed that Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, was killed on the morning of February 28.

Photo: Official State Department