2 billion in FY2026. Launching an ‘economic onslaught’ on Iran, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that President Donald Trump is making phone calls to world leaders with specific requests to stop all interactions with Iran.
The move comes amid the ongoing US-Iran conflict which has shaken the world economy and global oil markets since the end of February this year. Bessent said Monday that the new US sanctions are intended to shut off every potential source of revenue for Iran, while warning other countries that continuing their economic ties with Tehran could expose them to retaliation.
He said it was “no longer acceptable to operate in the gray spaces” of the conflict. The US has imposed sanctions on Iran for decades.
These measures prevent designated entities from accessing the dollar-based financial system. “Iran now faces a very clear choice, with only two paths before them: complete global isolation and a subsistence economy, or a path back to normalcy with an opportunity to rejoin the global economy.
“Beginning today, the actions of the Treasury and other agencies will tighten the noose and block every potential source of revenue that funds the IRGC and the evil Iranian regime. We are enforcing a zero leakage approach.
There will be no minimal breathing space for the regime to rebuild its capacity to inflict terror against America and the world,” he added. Operation Economic Outcast: What Bessent announced“Iran's enablers purchase, transport its petroleum.
They facilitate the flow of its finances through exchange houses and free trade zones. They welcome Iran's flights and maintain registries on its behalf.
They turn a blind eye to seaborne fuel transfers and overl and transits. They condone illicit use of their banks, all the while concealing the extent of their complicity,” Bessent said, warning countries of secondary sanctions.
He did not specify which countries could potentially be targeted with secondary US sanctions. “Let there be no ambiguity as to the position of the United States,” Bessent told a news conference.
“An economic engagement of any kind with this murderous regime will expose those responsible to the full reach of American power.” China buys crude oil in huge quantities from Iran.
Asked specifically about possible sanctions on China, Bessent said, “We want to make clear today that no one is above the reach of US sanctions. We find that the best way to engage with countries is through quiet diplomacy.”
