Pakistan, Nov. 11 -- Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that he told G7 allies that the US economic sanctions and naval blockade were working so well that President Donald Trump did not need to conduct major combat operations in Iran.

Speaking to reporters in Paris after two days of meetings with G7 allies, Rubio repeatedly pushed back on the assertion that not returning to military action would ?amount to a stalemate or status quo.

"The economic pain that is being inflicted on Iran right now is extraordinary and it compounds. It's growing every day," Rubio said. He added that Trump had also received input from regional allies in the Middle East confirming this assessment.

On Monday, Trump said he planned to hold off on new...