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Rubio heads to Europe to try garner support for Iran war
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Special Series Middle East conflict Conflict in the Middle East has been escalating. These stories provide context for current developments and the history that led up to them.
State of the World from NPR How is the war in Iran impacting Southeast Asia?
The Israeli military said overnight it struck ballistic missile production sites and air defense systems across Iran.
Israeli soldiers grieve during the funeral of Staff Sgt. Ori Greenberg, 21, at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem on Thursday. Odd Andersen/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
"In strikes carried out across Tehran, the IDF targeted infrastructure and sites used by the regime to produce weapons, with an emphasis on ballistic missile production facilities," Israel's military said in a statement, using its initials.
"In western Iran, the Air Force, guided by Military Intelligence, struck the Iranian terror regime's fire arrays throughout the night. Among the targets struck were launchers and missile storage sites that pose a threat to the State of Israel," it said.
In Lebanon, the Israeli army issued another forced evacuation order as it pushes north in the fight against the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.
A Hezbollah flag is seen in a destroyed car after an Israeli airstrike in Nabi Chit (Al-Nabi Shayth), Lebanon, on Thursday. Fabio Bucciarelli/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty hide caption
Israel was also under attack Friday, reporting a salvo of missiles from Iran.
And the Gulf states continued to suffer collateral damage. On Thursday night, Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had struck at U.S. bases in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Kuwait in the Gulf using missiles and drones.
Kuwait reported its port was attacked by drones, while sirens sounded in Bahrain and Qatar briefly issued a heightened security alert.
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The war and Iran's virtual blockade of the Strait of Hormuz — through which one-fifth of the world's oil typically passes — have economists worried.
The Paris-based organization raised its forecast for global inflation to 4% this year. In the U.S., it predicts 4.2% inflation.
"The halt in shipments through the Strait of Hormuz and the closure and damage of some energy infrastructure has generated a surge in energy prices and disrupted the global supply of energy and other important commodities, such as fertilisers," the OECD said Thursday. That drives up the cost of commerce and increases demand and inflation, it said.
The OECD cut the U.K.'s 2026 gross domestic product growth forecast to 0.7% — down by half a percentage point from the previous forecast of 1.2%.
On Thursday, stocks on Wall Street suffered their largest daily decline since the war began, falling as oil prices rose sharply. Asian shares mostly fell early Friday.
Asia Southeast Asia is being hit hard by Iran's cutoff of oil and gas Asian countries, which get most of their oil and gas through the waterway, have been making contingency plans. Japan plans to temporarily lift restrictions on coal-fired power plants, according to the Japan Times. Vietnam has temporarily waived an environmental tax to reduce gas prices by more than a quarter, as Channel News Asia reported.
The Philippines has declared a national energy emergency and transportation workers have been staging protests.
Finland's president, Alexander Stubb, warned in an interview with Politico this week that the Iran war could trigger a global recession that is worse for the economy than the coronavirus pandemic.
Eleanor Beardsley in Paris, Emily Feng in Van, Turkey, Michael Sullivan in Chiang Rai, Thailand, Kate Bartlett in Johannesburg and Alex Leff in Washington contributed to this report.
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio (left) and French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot pose for a group photo during a G7 Foreign Ministers' meeting at the Vaux-de-Cernay Abbey in Cernay-la-Ville, outside Paris, on Friday.
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Domestically produced tanks and missiles are put on display in Tehran, Iran, on Wednesday.
− Alain Jocard/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
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+ A U.S. intelligence assessment says a third of Iran's missiles have been destroyed. Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images hide caption
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− Representatives of the Group of Seven wealthiest democracies are gathering in France, where U.S.
+ The United States has only been able to confirm about one-third of Iran's missile arsenal has been destroyed after a month of war, a U.S.
− Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to try to shore up support among reticent allies for the Trump administration's war on Iran.
+ official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, told NPR.
− The meeting comes after President Trump on Thursday announced a new deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, or face destruction of its power plants, saying he was giving them until April 6.
+ The news came as Secretary of State Marco Rubio said destroying Iranian missiles and weapons systems was among the administration's top war objectives and that the operation is "ahead of schedule" and will conclude "in a matter of weeks, not months."
Here are more updates on Day 28 of the Iran war.
− Rubio's Europe trip also comes a day after Trump again slammed NATO — which includes most of the G7 — for not coming to the aid of the U.S.
+ Iranian women mourn during a funeral for victims of the Middle East war at the Behesht Zahra cemetery in southern Tehran on Thursday.
− when he asked for help reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a vital economic waterway largely blocked by Iran since the start of the conflict.
Middle East conflict Trump grants Iran another extension on a deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz European countries have said they were not informed of Trump's Iran plans beforehand and have no interest in entering what could be a protracted war.
+ AFP via Getty Images hide caption
To jump to specific areas of coverage, use the links below:
G7 meeting | Zelenskyy in Middle East | Attacks continue | Global economy
From left, the foreign ministers and secretaries of Ukraine, Germany, Britain, the U.S., France, Canada, Italy and Japan, along with the European Union's foreign policy chief, pose for a group picture during a G7 meeting at the Vaux-de-Cernay Abbey in Cernay-la-Ville, outside Paris, on Friday.
− Germany's defense minister was blunt in his assessment this week, saying Washington had "no exit strategy."
Iranian women mourn during a funeral for victims of the Middle East war at the Behesht Zahra cemetery in southern Tehran on Thursday.
+ Alain Jocard/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
U.S.
− AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Here are more updates on Day 28 of the Iran war.
+ Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the war in Iran with foreign ministers from leading European nations and Japan in France on Friday.
− To jump to specific areas of coverage, use the links below:
G7 meeting | Zelensky in Middle East | Attacks continue | Global economy
Foreign ministers from Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Canada and the European Union are meeting in France.
+ Despite differences over the war, the Group of Seven (G7) issued a joint statement calling for the "immediate cessation of attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructures" and the restoration of "safe and toll free freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz."
After the G7 meeting in Vaux-de-Cernay, France, Rubio warned that Iran may try to set up a toll system in the strait.
− The meeting is meant to shrink the growing chasm that has opened up between the Trump administration and some of the U.S.' main Western allies. Rubio has said countries should "step up" to help deal with the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
+ About a fifth of the world's oil typically passes through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway off Iran's coast, but most ships have been blocked from transiting it during the war.
− "Very little of our energy comes through the Strait of Hormuz. It's the world that has a great interest in that, so they should step up and deal with it," he told reporters before heading to Europe.
+ The meeting came a day after President Trump again slammed NATO — a military alliance that includes most of the G7 — for failure to help secure the strait.
− From left, the foreign ministers and secretaries of Ukraine, Germany, Britain, the U.S., France, Canada, Italy and Japan, along with the European Union's foreign policy chief, pose for a group picture during a G7 meeting at the Vaux-de-Cernay Abbey in Cernay-la-Ville, outside Paris, on Friday. Alain Jocard/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Kaja Kallas, the European Union's foreign policy chief, said on the eve of the meeting that "With our G7 partners, we'll discuss how to drive de-escalation in the Middle East, as the war's consequences are felt severely worldwide."
On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a surprise trip to Saudi Arabia, having said Ukraine's expertise with drone technology could help Gulf countries with their security.
+ Middle East conflict Trump grants Iran another extension on a deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz Rubio told reporters Friday "this is not going to be a prolonged conflict" and he said the objectives could be achieved "without any ground troops."
His remarks came as thousands of Marines and Army troops are headed to the Middle East.
− "Important meetings are scheduled. We appreciate the support of those who are ready to work with us to ensure security, and we support them too," he said on social media.
+ On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a surprise trip to Saudi Arabia and discussed defense cooperation with the Gulf country.
− Previously the Ukrainian leader posted a video message saying: "The key is not only producing new weapons — especially drones — not just technology, but also real experience in using it, and integrating it with radars, aviation, and other air defense systems.
+ "We have reached an important Arrangement between the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and the Ministry of Defense of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on defense cooperation," Zelenskyy wrote on social media, sharing images of his sit-down with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
− We have this experience."
In an interview with French newspaper Le Monde published Thursday, he said he would be seeking assistance for Ukraine's war in exchange.
"We would like Middle Eastern states to also give us an opportunity to strengthen ourselves.
+ "It lays the foundation for future contracts, technological cooperation, and investment.
− They have certain air defense missiles of which we don't have enough. That's what we'd like to reach a deal on," he said.
+ It also strengthens Ukraine's international role as a security donor."
Saudi Arabia's Defense Ministry says it has intercepted hundreds of drones and dozens of ballistic missiles fired at it from Iran in counterattacks from the U.S.-Israeli war.
− Despite what Trump said are promising negotiations with Iran, with Pakistan acting as go-between, strikes continued in the Middle East into Friday.
+ Zelenskyy said Ukraine can share expertise and systems after resisting a Russian invasion now in its fifth year.
+ "Saudi Arabia also has capabilities that are of interest to Ukraine, and this cooperation can be mutually beneficial," he added.
On Thursday in a video message to a military alliance of northern European countries, the Joint Expeditionary Force, Zelenskyy said: "The key is not only producing new weapons — especially drones — not just technology, but also real experience in using it, and integrating it with radars, aviation, and other air defense systems. We have this experience."
He also told France's Le Monde newspaper Ukraine wants to make a deal to acquire air defense missiles from Middle Eastern countries.
− The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) expects the war to boost consumer prices globally and slow economic growth in the United States, the United Kingdom and other advanced economies.
+ Middle East conflict How long will the war last? No one knows, and it's making oil prices weird The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) expects the war to boost consumer prices globally and slow economic growth in the United States, the United Kingdom and other advanced economies.