Secretary of State Marco Rubio has faced strong criticism after calling Donald Trump the “President of Peace” as the war with Iran continues.
Rubio made the claim on Saturday in a post on X. He was marking the one year anniversary of a peace deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Rubio praised Trump for helping bring the two sides together at the White House. He said the meeting was a major moment for both nations.
“President Trump is the President of Peace,” Rubio wrote.
He said Trump had secured peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan one year earlier. He also praised Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev for signing a joint declaration.
Rubio described the agreement as a historic step. But his message soon drew sharp reactions online.
Critics questioned the timing of the post. The United States is now involved in a major conflict with Iran. The war has continued for months and has led to growing concern about deaths and wider damage.
Many users on X mocked Rubio for using the “President of Peace” label while the Iran conflict remains active.
The criticism also focused on Trump’s past claims about the Armenia and Azerbaijan agreement.
Trump has often presented the deal as one of his major foreign policy successes. But he has also made mistakes when talking about it in public.
At one event, Trump confused the names of Armenia and Albania while discussing the agreement. He has also struggled to pronounce Azerbaijan correctly.
Those mistakes have been used by critics to question how closely Trump understood the conflict he claimed to help resolve.
Rubio’s latest praise brought those old comments back into the public debate.
Some users said the phrase “President of Peace” was hard to accept while the United States was fighting Iran.
The online response included sarcasm and insults aimed at Rubio and other members of Trump’s administration.
One user said Rubio appeared focused on protecting Trump’s public image. Another post used images of clown shoes to mock members of the administration.
The strongest criticism centered on civilian deaths during the Iran war.
One user referred to a US missile strike that destroyed an elementary school during the early part of the conflict. The strike reportedly killed about 175 people, including many children.
The user questioned how Trump could be called a “President of Peace” after such an attack.
The comments show the growing gap between the Trump administration’s message on peace and the criticism it faces over military action.
Rubio has remained a key figure in Trump’s foreign policy team. His public support for the president has also been clear on major foreign policy issues.
The Armenia and Azerbaijan agreement remains one of the events the administration points to when discussing Trump’s record on peace.
For Rubio, the anniversary was an opportunity to highlight that agreement again.
But the message came at a difficult time.
The ongoing Iran war has changed the way many people view claims about Trump’s foreign policy record. Supporters may point to past diplomatic efforts as proof that Trump can make peace deals.
Critics, however, argue that those claims are weakened by the current conflict.
The reaction to Rubio’s post shows how difficult it can be for the administration to promote Trump as a peace leader while defending military action abroad.
The debate is likely to continue as the Iran war develops. For now, Rubio’s attempt to praise Trump as the “President of Peace” has drawn more attention to the conflict than to the anniversary he wanted to highlight.
