Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the US could have quickly seized Iran’s oil reserves if Tehran had not invested in its military potential. Ghalibaf noted this in response to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s recent statement.

Ghalibaf wrote on X that without spending on arms, the US “could have invaded, seized all their oil fields in 48 hours… arm the Israelis with the best weapons and create many new ‘Gaza Strips’” in the country, refuting Rubio’s claim that Iran should prioritize domestic spending over defense.

“Imagine if instead of spending billions on weapons, Iran spent that money on its people. They'd have a much different country,” Rubio had stated.

Ghalibaf, however, dismissed this scenario, calling it an “American dream” that would never come true.

“That would be so wonderful… Then we could invade, seize all their oil fields in 48 hours—in 48 hours, believe me, arm the Israelis with the best weapons, and create a bunch of new ‘Gaza Strips.’ The real ‘American dream,’ guys. Never!” the Iranian parliament speaker added.