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It’s been well over a month since April 8, when Donald Trump announced a ceasefire in Iran, but now that truce appears to be under real strain.

This week, tensions between the US and the Middle Eastern country have escalated, with both sides exchanging strikes just as a possible breakthrough in peace talks seemed imminent.

So, how realistic is the prospect of a peace deal at this point? And, as the situation deteriorates, how has one political figure edged ever closer to the centre of power?

US secretary of state Marco Rubio has increasingly rowed in behind his president’s foreign-policy agenda, but who exactly is the political hawk turned Trump cheerleader? And how did he climb the Mar-a-Lago ladder to join Trump’s inner circle?

On today’s The Indo Daily, host Tessa Fleming is joined by Scott Lucas, professor of international politics at the Clinton Institute in UCD, to discuss the latest on Iran and the rise of Marco Rubio.

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