The United States has threatened Iran with what it described as the “largest financial war ever,” as Washington prepares to impose economic sanctions on Monday targeting Iran’s trading partners.
Iran, in turn, has threatened to halt all oil exports from the Gulf “if the economic war continues.”
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is scheduled to hold a news conference at 1 p.m. Eastern Time (1700 GMT) on Monday, amid warnings that Washington will announce tougher measures against a country that has faced near-continuous economic sanctions since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
In an opinion article published in the Financial Times on Sunday, Bessent wrote that “economic judgment day begins at dawn — the largest financial war ever waged against an adversary.”
The two countries have not exchanged military strikes for several weeks, but neither has entered serious talks aimed at ending the six-month-old conflict.
Thousands of people, most of them in Iran and Lebanon, have been killed since the United States and Israel launched the war with attacks on February 28. The conflict has weakened much of Iran’s conventional military capabilities, damaged its economy and resulted in the killing of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Iran, however, retains enough missile and drone capabilities to launch attacks on neighboring Gulf states and threaten oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. The threats have brought shipping through the vital waterway to an almost complete halt and put pressure on global fuel prices.
The status of Iran’s nuclear program, which the United States and Israel have sought to eliminate, remains unclear.
Without detailing the planned measures, Bessent hinted that Washington would target “fearful countries” pursuing a policy of appeasement by continuing to engage with Iran’s economy and financial system.
“They had better think about the consequences of continuing to do so,” he wrote in the Financial Times.
Iran has been preparing for the sanctions for days, issuing a series of strongly worded statements suggesting it is planning a major military response.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, pointed to the possibility of an economic response. In a social media post, he said: “If the economic war continues, not a single drop of oil will be exported, neither through the Strait of Hormuz nor from anywhere in the Persian Gulf.”
He added that Iran would consider any country participating in the US economic war against the Iranian people, or supporting it, to be engaging in an act of war.
Bessent had earlier urged Beijing to cooperate with Washington, noting that China typically imports about half of its oil needs from the Gulf region.
A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington responded that “sanctions and pressure do not help solve the problem,” while calling for diplomacy.
Iran’s economy was already under severe pressure from international sanctions before US and Israeli attacks damaged parts of its infrastructure.
Although Tehran continues to publicly maintain a defiant stance, Iranian officials have warned that further economic sanctions could deepen hardship, fuel unrest and further erode the legitimacy of the Islamic Republic.
Iran entered the war with high inflation, a weak currency, energy shortages, sanctions and deep-rooted structural vulnerabilities. It now faces the additional challenges of damaged infrastructure, disrupted trade, lost production and the cost of reconstruction.
With no formal face-to-face talks currently taking place between the United States and Iran—the latest were held in Switzerland in June—other countries, including Qatar, Pakistan and Türkiye, have sought to strengthen diplomatic efforts.
Iran said Pakistani army chief Asim Munir would visit Tehran on Monday as part of efforts to restore peace and security in the region, but provided few details.
Pakistan is acting as a mediator in the conflict, and a Pakistani government source said Munir would discuss the latest developments, including the US threat to impose new sanctions.
US and Israeli strikes on Iran, along with Israeli attacks on Lebanon during the war, have killed thousands and displaced millions. The United States has said 18 of its military personnel were killed and more than 750 wounded.
Source: Reuters
