Rubio kicks off West Asia trip as allies seek answers on Iran

TEHRAN, June 24 (Agencies): US Secretary of State Marco Rubio begins a West Asia tour in earnest on Wednesday, seeking to reassure Gulf allies who view concessions in President Donald Trump's Iran deal that include a proposed $300 billion fund as too generous to a regional foe.
Arriving in Abu Dhabi late on Tuesday for a three-day Gulf trip, Rubio is undertaking his first high-level diplomatic mission on the agreement reached last week to end the four-month-old US-Israeli war with Iran.
Asked on arrival if he planned to address allies' disquiet with the accord, Rubio told reporters: "That most certainly will come up in these discussions." He said they would also discuss issues not covered by the memorandum of understanding.
America's top diplomat has been largely absent from Iran-related discussions in recent weeks, with Vice President JD Vance instead leading a round of talks with Iranian counterparts over the weekend in Switzerland.
An Israeli strike on a vehicle in southern Lebanon killed two people on Wednesday, Lebanese state media reported, a day after Israeli gunfire killed two people which militant group Hezbollah called a "violation" of a truce between the two sides.
Meanwhile, Iran called the deal to end the Middle East war "a declaration of America's defeat" on Wednesday, as the top US diplomat renewed his country's commitment to UAE security during a tour of the Gulf.
The war that began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28 ended with the Islamic republic striking an agreement it has portrayed as a victory.
The conflict sowed chaos in the region, with Tehran retaliating by blockading a key waterway for energy shipments and launching thousands of drones and missiles at its Gulf neighbours and Israel.
The US and Iran signed the agreement last week and launched a process aimed at reaching a permanent settlement-with the Islamic republic's leadership transformed but the system of rule firmly in place.
Earlier, The US Senate approved a war powers resolution preventing Donald Trump from continuing hostilities against Iran, delivering the president a significant but symbolic rebuke over a conflict that has proven unpopular with the American public.
The resolution passed by a 50-48 vote, with four Republicans – Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Rand Paul of Kentucky – breaking with their party to support its adoption. John Fetterman, of Pennsylvania, was the sole Democrat to vote against the resolution.
The measure, which passed the House of Representatives earlier this month, would require the president to seek Congress’s authorization to use military force against Iran. It comes after Trump dispatched JD Vance to Switzerland to negotiate a settlement that would resolve the conflict the US began alongside Israel in February.
The resolution does not require the president’s signature, and Trump and his Republican allies have questioned the constitutionality of the 1973 War Powers Act under which it was passed.