State Department Briefing, July 10, 2025: Rubio in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Nuclear MOU and Sanctions on UN Rapporteur Albanese

Name: "State Department Briefing, July 10, 2025: Rubio in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Nuclear MOU and Sanctions on UN Rapporteur Albanese"
Uploaded: 2025-07-10
Duration: 39 min 23 s
Description: "Spokesperson Tammy Bruce says Secretary Rubio signed a civil nuclear cooperation memorandum with Malaysia at the ASEAN meetings, and announces sanctions on UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese and a new do-not-travel-to-Iran campaign, according to the State Department upload."

July 10, 2025 · U.S. Department of State · 0:39:23

Embedded from the source channel — never re-uploaded. Watch on YouTube

What happened

Spokesperson Tammy Bruce led the July 10, 2025 department briefing — Bruce is not among the officials tracked by name on this site, so this page is tagged with no tracked official, and Secretary Rubio, who is tracked, is reported on rather than speaking in the briefing. Bruce said Secretary Rubio was in Kuala Lumpur for the ASEAN-related foreign ministers meetings and bilateral engagements, reaffirming the U.S. commitment to a free, open and secure Indo-Pacific; that he participated in the ASEAN-U.S. Post-Ministerial Conference and held meetings with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar and counterparts from Malaysia, Russia, Japan and the Philippines; and that, as the Secretary has stated, the Indo-Pacific accounts for two-thirds of global growth and remains a central focus of U.S. foreign policy, as she stated it.

Bruce said the Secretary also signed a nuclear cooperation Memorandum of Understanding with Malaysia, advancing civil nuclear energy collaboration under the highest standards of safety, security and nonproliferation, and that negotiations toward a 123 Agreement are underway, which once finalized would permit the transfer of nuclear material and equipment for peaceful purposes, according to her remarks. She also noted that the next day marked the fourth anniversary of the Cuban regime’s July 11 crackdown, that Deputy Secretary Landau met Cuban democracy and human rights advocates, and that Secretary Rubio’s video message made clear the administration promotes accountability for the regime’s human rights violations, as she stated it.

Bruce announced that the United States is imposing sanctions on UN Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese for abuse of her role, saying she had targeted U.S. companies in an unacceptable campaign of political and economic warfare and that the United States will take whatever actions it deems necessary to protect its sovereignty, Israel and other allies from illegitimate ICC actions, as she stated it. Finally, she announced a new awareness campaign and website — state.gov/do-not-travel-to-Iran — warning Americans, especially Iranian-Americans, not to travel to Iran because the regime does not recognize dual nationality and routinely denies consular services to detained U.S. citizens, and that while the bombing has stopped it is not safe to travel there, according to her remarks.

Why it matters

The briefing is the department’s contemporaneous record of three distinct moves — civil-nuclear cooperation with Malaysia, sanctions on a UN rapporteur, and a new Iran travel-warning campaign — each announced from the podium rather than in standalone releases.

Sources: U.S. Department of State, “Department of State Press Briefing - July 10, 2025”, 2025-07-10 (official upload, embedded above; published 2025-07-10). Transcript via Supadata (private research store, paraphrased and attributed, not republished). All figures and characterizations as stated by the speakers.