FP - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told his G-7 counterparts on Friday that the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran—aready nearing its one-month mark—could continue for another two to four weeks

FP -  By Alexandra Sharp   March 27, 2026

Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at a U.S. timeline for the Iran war, how Republican lawmakers are prioritizing funding for immigration enforcement, and the state of Russia’s beleaguered economy.

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How Much Longer?

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives a G-7 foreign ministers’ meeting in Cernay-la-Ville, France, on March 27.Michel Euler/AFP via Getty Images

lU.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told his G-7 counterparts on Friday that the U.S.-Israeli war againstIran—aready nearing its one-month mark—could continue for another two to four weeks,   sources told Axios. Speaking to reporters after the G-7 meeting, Rubio said that the United States is “on or ahead of schedule in ‌that operation, and expect to conclude it at the appropriate time here—a matter of weeks, not months.”

Analysts suggest that extending the conflict for that length of time could have devastating consequences for the world economy, as 28 days of war have already caused unprecedented turbulence to global energy flows and worsened instability in the Middle East.

G-7 foreign ministers and their allies convened in the French countryside on Thursday for a two-day conference aimed at addressing rising geopolitical insecurity. Yet the main show did not begin until Rubio arrived on Friday, upon which he stressed that the United States remains committed to achieving all of its war objectives.

“Our mission is clear. Iran will never obtain a nuclear weapon,” Rubio wrote on X on Friday. “In my meeting with the G7 foreign ministers, I reiterated that we must meet this moment with maximum partner contributions.”

Yet such contributions may not be easy to secure. Washington’s G-7 allies remain hesitant to join U.S. military efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, where roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil normally transits. “We have taken the approach of supporting defensive action, but also we’ve taken a different approach on the offensive action that has taken place as part of this conflict,” British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said on Friday.

Such reluctance has angered U.S. President Donald Trump, who has taken out his vitriol on NATO as a whole. “We are very disappointed with NATO because NATO has done absolutely nothing,” Trump said during a cabinet meeting on Thursday. He later appeared to suggest that the United States would not come to the aid of the alliance’s members due to their own inaction regarding Hormuz. “We’re always going to be there—at least, we were,” Trump said. “I don’t know about anymore, to be honest with you.”

This has forced Rubio to walk a fine line between appeasing the White House and selling the United States’ Iran strategy to Washington’s closest allies.

Still, some common ground has been found. G-7 foreign ministers agreed to adopt a declaration on Friday calling for the “immediate cessation” of attacks on civilian population centers and infrastructure. “Nothing justifies deliberately targeting civilians during armed conflicts, nor carrying out attacks against diplomatic facilities,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said, adding that the declaration “also reaffirms the absolute necessity of permanently restoring free and safe navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.”

Meanwhile, it remains unclear just how close (if at all) the Iran war is to reaching a diplomatic solution. Rubio reportedly told the conference’s attendees on Friday that Washington is still communicating with Tehran via mediators but is close to holding serious negotiations. On Thursday, Trump gave Tehran another 10 days to reopen Hormuz or else face attacks on its energy infrastructure.

Rubio’s comments come amid reports that the U.S. Defense Department is considering deploying at least 10,000 additional combat troops to the Middle East in the coming days. Rubio said on Friday that the United States can achieve its aims in Iran without ground troops but that it was deploying some to the region “to give the president maximum optionality and maximum opportunity to adjust the contingencies, should they emerge.”

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