Tensions soar as Hegseth and Rubio feud over US troops in Iran

Tensions soar as Hegseth and Rubio feud over US troops in Iran Submitted by Sean Mathews on Wed, 03/04/2026 - 21:30 US Secretary of State is warning against deploying troops as Hegseth takes a hawkish turn US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth look on during a bilateral meeting with President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in the Oval Office of the White House, on 3 March 2026 (Win McNamee/Getty Images/AFP) Off Tensions are rising between US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio over the US’s approach to the war on Iran , three former US officials and a senior regional official familiar with the matter told Middle East Eye. Rubio and Hegseth were described as “at each other's throats” over the question of whether the US should deploy troops to Iran at Israel’s request, the sources told MEE. Hegseth is supportive of the position, while Rubio is deeply wary of entangling the US in a long war, the sources told MEE.