The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed yesterday, Monday, its intention to cut off “all of Iran’s financial resources,” issuing a warning to any country that continues to “support” Tehran —which, for its part, promised “a new defeat” for Washington.
During a press conference in the U.S. capital, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent referred to a new barrage of so-called “secondary” sanctions, which will affect not only Iran directly but also its trading partners, and which target gold, technology, digital resources, aviation, and maritime transport…
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However, he did not specify when the new U.S. sanctions would take effect, nor which countries are at risk of being targeted by the U.S. China, the world’s second-largest economy, for example, consumes large quantities of Iranian oil.
“Iran faces a very clear choice between only two possible paths: complete isolation (…) or a return to normalcy and the possibility of reintegration into the global economy,” said Mr. Bessent.
The warning was also directed at the rest of the world: countries that do not participate in U.S. measures will either contribute “to Iran’s isolation” or face sanctions of their own, including expulsion from “the dollar system.”
“We will hold everyone accountable,” should anyone dare to challenge the effort aimed at “the economic suffocation of the regime”: “No one should test our resolve” on this matter, Scott Bessent declared.
“New Defeat”
The day before, he had promised Iran an “economic D-Day,” using a term that refers to the Allied landings in Normandy, in France, which was still under Nazi occupation at the time, to cut off the last “lifelines” of Tehran, as diplomatic efforts aimed at ending the war—which broke out on February 28— with the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran, remain at an impasse.
Speaking on Iranian state television, Economy Minister Ali Madanizadeh emphasized that the threats will result in nothing more than “another defeat” for the U.S., adding that Tehran has prepared a “two-year plan” to counter the sanctions.
Even before Scott Bessent’s press conference, Beijing—a strategically important partner of Tehran—assessed that Washington’s “sanctions and pressure” would not allow the conflict in the Middle East to be resolved.
U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegese, for his part, warned that maximum economic pressure does not mean an end to U.S. bombings, should they be deemed necessary.
A “very difficult” situation
Since the outbreak of the war, the strategically important Strait of Hormuz has been at the heart of the conflict, through which one-fifth of the world’s hydrocarbons were transported prior to the war; Tehran closed it, and it has been open for only a few days over the past six months, which has led to soaring fuel prices and increased pressure on U.S. President Donald Trump, as the midterm elections— in November, draw near.
Iran rules out any return to the pre-war situation in the strait and has been negotiating for months with Oman, on the other side of the waterway, regarding the terms of transit. Oman’s foreign minister, Band Al-Busaidi, is expected in Tehran today.
An indication of the dangers involved in transiting the strait: an oil tanker was struck by an “unknown projectile” while sailing off the coast of Oman, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO)—a maritime security agency under the Ministry of Defense—announced late Monday night into Tuesday.
Despite Tehran’s unyielding stance, Iranian President Masoud Pezeskian acknowledged that the country faces “many economic difficulties” following decades of U.S. and international sanctions.
“Iran must make compromises now,” said Sara Hassanbeigi, a pharmacist who spoke to Agence France-Presse in Tehran. “The situation is truly very difficult. I don’t think” Iranians can “hold out much longer,” she added.
On July 22, inflation reached 66 percent year-over-year in the country, up from 46 percent in February, while the national currency continued to fall: the rial’s exchange rate against the dollar stood at 1.88 million to one last week, compared with 1.65 million before the war broke out.
According to the commercial shipping monitoring firm Kpler, the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports in the Gulf has resulted in a sharp decline in crude oil exports from the Islamic Republic: they fell from 2 million barrels per day before the war to just 0.4 million in mid-August, the lowest level since the outbreak of the armed conflict.
Source: Proto Thema
