No escalation, no agreement... Trump chooses a third path: 'Suffocating Iran economically'

- Bessent moves to a military base... after Iranian threats

- Tehran insists on keeping its enriched nuclear materials

- Al-Saadi ran the “Farnborough plot” from his prison in New York

Washington-Tehran – AFP, Reuters – As the world awaits the outcome of the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran, Axios reported that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio informed his G7 counterparts that President Donald Trump chose to continue economic pressure on Tehran after weighing the options of resuming military escalation or reaching an agreement.

The website, citing three sources who attended the closed-door meeting in Paris on Tuesday, said Rubio presented this approach as a “third option” aimed at economically strangling the Iranian regime, clarifying that Washington had not set a deadline for lifting its punitive measures.

In a related development, the G7 called on Iran to halt its “continuous attacks” on civilian ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

It pledged, “in the absence of a diplomatic solution,” coordinated efforts to limit Iran’s “economic and political” capacity to “fuel instability” in the region and worldwide.

The foreign ministers of the group praised the efforts of regional mediators in a statement issued after their meetings in Paris on November 9 and 10.

They stated that “Iran must never be allowed to develop or possess a nuclear weapon,” and urged it to stop supporting non-state armed groups in the region.

The statement “strongly condemned” Iranian attacks on neighboring countries and the disruption to international trade, energy security, and the global economy caused by the obstruction of passage in the Strait of Hormuz.

It expressed “grave concern” over Iran’s involvement in “plots and violent acts” targeting citizens and territories of the group’s member states. It referred to Britain’s announcement holding Tehran responsible for the incident near Farnborough Airbase on September 27.

In a related development, the United States accused three “Iranian agents” of planning a “terrorist campaign” involving nearly 20 attacks targeting Jewish communities in Europe and the United States, as well as Farnborough Airbase.

Federal prosecutors announced new charges against a commander in Iraq’s Hezbollah Brigades, alleging he helped orchestrate a plot to target the base in southern England, despite being incarcerated in a Brooklyn, New York, prison.

The indictment indicates that Al-Saadi used indirect language during one of the calls, asking his sister, “What are they doing about all our old work?”—a phrase prosecutors said carried a coded meaning related to the plot to target the British base.

Meanwhile, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent moved from his Washington home to reside at a military base “for his safety,” according to an informed official source, amid threats linked to Iran. Bessent is the third high-ranking official in the Trump administration to move into military accommodations, following Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, according to reports.

The New York Times, citing three informed sources, reported that Iran’s planning to target U.S. officials had reached a “more advanced stage,” though the severity of the threats against Bessent remained unclear.

On another front, Trump praised the Secretary of Defense after the House of Representatives rejected impeachment proceedings against him in connection with the war, marking a victory for the president just days after his party’s defeat in the midterm elections.

In an interview with the Lebanese Al-Mayadeen channel, he added, “We need enriched materials to design nuclear-powered ships and submarines,” noting that Tehran had informed Moscow that the enriched nuclear materials would remain in the country and “we will use them ourselves.”

He affirmed that Tehran and Washington are not currently conducting any negotiations. He added, “Any new attacks by the United States will also be met with targeting distant American bases.”

On Tuesday, government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani predicted a natural gas supply deficit of 430 million cubic meters this year, compared to approximately 300 million cubic meters in previous years.