Secretary of State Marco Rubio Draws Red Line on Iran… With Lipstick
“Iran can never have a nuclear weapon… we want the Iranian people to be happy.”
— Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Face the Nation, May 2025
In a quiet but seismic moment on Face the Nation, Secretary of State Marco Rubio drew a red line on Iran’s nuclear ambitions—not with missiles, but with lipstick, signaling not just confrontation with the regime, but support for a future shaped by the Iranian people—particularly its women. “We want Iran to be a rich, peaceful and prosperous country where its people can be happy,” Rubio said. That’s not mere arms control. That’s a coded message: it’s time for the mullahs to go.
No one understands that signal better than Alireza Jafarzadeh, Deputy Director of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), and the man who blew the whistle on Iran’s secret nuclear facilities two decades ago. While Rubio reiterated that Iran will never obtain a nuclear weapon, his language was clear: the end goal is not just containment—it’s freedom. And that can’t happen without regime change.
Nowhere has the regime’s cruelty been more relentless than toward women. And no opposition group has done more to defy that cruelty than the NCRI, whose proposed replacement for the mullahs is a woman: Maryam Rajavi. In a regime where girls are jailed for dancing, the NCRI puts one forward to lead the nation.
Rubio drew the line. Jafarzadeh knows what it means. And the world should pay attention.
Alireza Jafarzadeh is available for interviews to unpack what Rubio’s message really means—and how the U.S. is now edging closer than ever to embracing what the Iranian people have long demanded: freedom, not appeasement.
This isn’t about another deal with dictators. It’s about dismantling a terror state before it gets the bomb. The NCRI has the plan, the people, and the woman to do it.
Speakers Available:
Alireza Jafarzadeh – Deputy Director, NCRI-US
Mohammad Mohaddessin – Chairman, NCRI Foreign Affairs Committee
Other Speakers Available:
Shahin Gobadi – Member of NCRI Parliament in Exile
Ali Safavi – Member of NCRI Parliament in Exile
Related Article(s)
Link to Press conference:
Iran’s Supreme Leader Calls Trump a ‘Disgrace’ – Newsweek
Optional Q&A
- Secretary Rubio said the Iranian people “can be happy” if Iran abandons its nuclear ambitions. Do you believe this was a coded call for regime change?
- You were the first to expose key nuclear sites in Natanz and Arak. How close is the regime today to weaponization—and what’s the U.S. not being told?
- Rubio insists Iran will “never” have a nuclear weapon. Can that goal be achieved without dismantling the regime that’s built its survival on the bomb?
- The NCRI’s alternative to the regime is a woman—Maryam Rajavi. How does her leadership directly challenge the regime’s misogynistic foundations?
- With the regime cracking down violently on dissent and executing protesters, what risk does the international community take by continuing diplomatic engagement?
- Do you see the Trump administration’s current posture—especially Rubio’s comments—as a shift toward recognizing the NCRI as a legitimate alternative?
- How does the NCRI’s vision for a free Iran address the threats the regime currently poses to Israel, the Gulf states, and global security?
- What would a peaceful transition of power in Iran actually look like—and what role should the U.S. play in supporting that without military intervention?
ABOUT ALIREZA JAFARZADEH…
Alireza Jafarzadeh serves as the Deputy Director of the Washington Office of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). He is also the author of The Iran Threat (Palgrave MacMillan, New York, 2008).
A recognized expert on Iranian policy, Jafarzadeh has been at the forefront of efforts to prevent the Iranian regime from acquiring nuclear weapons. His groundbreaking work in 2002 and 2003 led to the discovery of key illicit nuclear sites in Iran, including the Natanz uranium enrichment facility, the Arak heavy water plant, the Kalaye Electric centrifuge testing facility near Tehran, and the Lashkar Ab’ad laser enrichment facility. These revelations prompted the first-ever inspections of Iranian nuclear sites by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Jafarzadeh is a frequent guest on major television and radio networks, including CBS Evening News, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, CNBC, Bloomberg TV, and France 24. His insights have also been featured in leading publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Time, and The Hill.
ABOUT SHAHIN GOBADI…
Shahin Gobadi, a U.S.-educated nuclear engineer, is a member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), Iran’s Parliament-in-Exile.
An astute observer of Iranian affairs for over three decades, Gobadi is an expert on topics including Iranian state-sponsored terrorism, proxy groups in the Middle East, the Iranian nuclear and weapons of mass destruction (WMD) programs, Western policy toward Iran, and internal Iranian affairs.
He has been interviewed by major international media outlets, including CNN, Fox News, BBC, Sky TV, GB News, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Times, The Daily Telegraph, Reuters, and the Associated Press. Gobadi’s writings have appeared in prominent media across the U.S. and Europe.
ABOUT ALI SAFAVI…
Ali Safavi is a member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), Iran’s Parliament-in-Exile.
A sociologist by training, Safavi studied and taught at UCLA, California State University Los Angeles, and the University of Michigan. He was an active participant in the anti-Shah student movement in the 1970s in the United States and has been deeply engaged in Iranian affairs ever since.
Safavi has lectured and written extensively on Iran, Iraq, terrorism, nuclear proliferation, and Middle Eastern politics. He has appeared in interviews on networks such as CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, BBC, Sky TV, Newsmax, and France 24. His articles and commentary have been published in leading outlets, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Hill, The Boston Herald, The Washington Times, and The Financial Times.
ABOUT MOHAMMAD MOHADDESSIN…
Mr. Mohammad Mohaddessin, is the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). NCRI is a coalition of various political tendencies and democratic forces working to establish a free and pluralistic republic based on democratic values.
Mohammad Mohaddessin was born in Qom, Iran, the son of a Grand Ayatollah who was opposed to the regime. He studied both in religious seminary and modern education.
In the 1970s, While he was a student in Iran’s most prestigious Sharif University, in 1975 he was arrested and sentenced to 15 years for his affiliation with the People’s Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI) and opposition to the shah dictatorship. While in prison he was severely tortured.
Mohaddessin has lectured on numerous international forums on Iranian affairs and has represented the Iranian resistance in many international events and conferences.
He has written extensively on political and religious regional issue in Iran and the region. He is the author of “Islamic Fundamentalism: The New Global Threat”, published in 1993 (Seven Locks Press, Washington) in which he addressed the emerging threat of Islamic fundamentalism in the world.
In addition to many articles and essays, Mr. Mohaddessin has authored several other books, including Enemies of Ayatollahs, Democracy Betrayed and The Unethical Policy.
CONTACT:
For further details or to arrange the interview, please contact Jerry McGlothlin at 919-437-0001 / Bookings@SeasonalLiving.com
