US-Iran tension: Rubio issues stern warning, Iran insists it won't send uranium abroad

Iran has publicly stated it will not send even a single gram of its enriched uranium to another country.

Mohsen Rezaee, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said talks will not move forward until the US takes concrete steps to build trust. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said seven conditions put forward last month for reopening the Strait of Hormuz must be fulfilled.

Iran has been demanding that the US lift its blockade and economic sanctions, while the US wants tighter control over Iran's nuclear program.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a peace agreement with Iran remains extremely difficult. He said economic pressure would continue until attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz stop.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until the US accepts Iran's conditions. He said indirect talks between the two countries are continuing through mediation by Pakistan and Qatar, and that a formal meeting between the two sides has already taken place at Pakistan's initiative.

The Strait of Hormuz is a key maritime route for shipping crude oil from the Gulf region to world markets. Western countries have accused Iran of trying to build nuclear weapons, saying it has enriched uranium to nearly 60 percent.