Washington: Economic Pressure to Force Iran Back to Negotiations

The United States announced that it has launched a “global campaign” to sever the remaining economic ties with Iran, calling on “everyone” to stay away from Tehran. At the same time, Washington denied targeting civilians in military strikes directed at military facilities belonging to the Iranian regime. US President Donald Trump affirmed that the United States was forced to take military action against Iran to prevent it from acquiring a nuclear weapon, asserting that Washington currently controls the Strait of Hormuz.

Speaking during a podcast, Trump stated, “If we hadn’t done that, Iran would now possess a nuclear weapon,” adding that if the US had not deployed B-2 bombers a year ago to destroy Iran’s nuclear capabilities, Tehran would have been “two weeks away from possessing a nuclear weapon.” He explained that Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon would have meant that “Israel would have disappeared, and the Middle East would have disappeared,” noting that Iran would also have targeted cities within the United States, describing the Iranian regime as “crazy.” Trump emphasized that “Iran will not possess a nuclear weapon,” viewing what he termed “short-term pain” as the price for achieving “long-term gains.”

In a related development, the US president hinted at the possibility of renaming the Strait of Hormuz the “Trump Strait” following US control over it. Trump posted on his social media platform, Truth Social: “Now that the Strait of Hormuz is under US control, should we change its name to the ‘Trump Strait’?”

One day after US forces carried out “strong and wide-ranging” strikes against targets belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), involving approximately 100 targets, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced: “We have begun a global campaign to sever the remaining economic ties with Iran. We aim to create sufficient economic pressure to force Tehran back to negotiations on terms acceptable to President Donald Trump.” He added that “the current Iranian government could fall sooner than many expect.”

Bessent clarified that the US is imposing unprecedented sanctions on Iran and that their measures will “choke the regime in Tehran,” reiterating, “We will cut off every link connecting the Iranian regime to the outside world.” He noted that President Trump believes previous diplomatic efforts failed because Iranian leaders were not prepared to reach an agreement. Trump is determined that Tehran will not emerge from this conflict with its government and capabilities intact without undergoing change.

In remarks to Fox News, Bessent said, “My message to everyone is to stay away from Iran.” He pointed out that the Iranian president and parliament speaker had publicly acknowledged that their country’s economy is facing problems, noting that the Iranian currency has collapsed and inflation has exceeded 100%, leaving the regime “unable to pay its forces’ salaries.”

He continued: “We will systematically target every bad actor dealing with Iran and remove them from the scene. We all want this conflict to end, and the fastest way to do so is if no one provides any support to the Iranian regime. We are telling friends and adversaries alike: do not deal with the evil Iranian regime. And to those who do deal with it, we know who you are, and if necessary, we will remove you from the business circle.”

He highlighted that “teams from the US Departments of Treasury, State, and Defense have been deployed worldwide as part of efforts to isolate Iran,” adding that they had established new authorities for the Treasury Department to impose sanctions in the areas of aviation, the maritime sector, and digital assets.

Earlier, the US Treasury Secretary revealed in an interview with Fox Business, on the sidelines of the G20 finance ministers’ meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, that the United States is tracking external assets and accounts linked to the IRGC in several countries, threatening to freeze them as part of Washington’s campaign to intensify financial pressure on Tehran. Bessent stated that Washington would work with its partners to close channels used by these assets, confirming that US measures would not be limited to accounts and properties linked to the IRGC but could extend to banks, companies, and entities dealing with it.

He indicated that measures could include financial institutions, aircraft leasing companies, and any parties dealing with the IRGC, warning of the possibility of denying them access to the US financial system and the US dollar. He said Washington would pursue what he described as the “illegal assets” of the Iranian regime, adding that these funds could be returned to the Iranian people or used to compensate victims of terrorist attacks.

Meanwhile, the Iranian currency recorded its lowest-ever level against the dollar yesterday, surpassing the 2.2 million rials per dollar threshold in the unofficial market.

For its part, US Central Command (CENTCOM) stated that it is reviewing reports claiming a wedding party in the southern Iranian city of Sirik was targeted, affirming, “We never target civilians, unlike the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.” CENTCOM had previously announced that its forces successfully executed a series of strikes against Iranian military targets. It specified that the strikes targeted IRGC sites, including air defense systems, radar systems, naval assets, military facilities, as well as mine-laying capabilities and communication sites.

A US source told Al Arabiya satellite channel that these strikes were “preventive” and aimed at thwarting an Iranian plot to strike undersea cables in the Strait of Hormuz.

Despite the new escalation, four sources familiar with White House discussions reported that Trump’s aides are seeking to prevent a dangerous escalation of the war, fearing that Republicans could suffer a defeat in the midterm congressional elections scheduled for November next year. These sources told Al Arabiya that a temporary de-escalation might give the US military an opportunity to replenish its stocks of precision munitions, which have been significantly depleted.

The sources, who requested anonymity, stated that White House officials may consider intensifying military operations after the November 3 elections. They attributed to White House officials the view that Vice President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are among the senior officials who support keeping the conflict with Tehran “relatively quiet” until next November. The same sources indicated that the US administration is currently focusing on increasing economic pressure on Tehran in an attempt to extract concessions in any future negotiations.

Separately, a spokesperson for the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Pakistan remains engaged with sister nations in efforts to find a solution to the US-Iran dispute. He noted that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif recently met with the Iranian president in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, on the sidelines of a Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting, and that Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar met with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, in the same context.

He explained that the recent visit to Iran by the Chief of Army Staff, General Asim Munir, was part of Islamabad’s efforts to de-escalate tensions and seek ways to ease the situation and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The spokesperson for the Pakistani Foreign Ministry said that despite the recent escalation between Washington and Tehran, Islamabad continues to urge the adoption of dialogue and diplomacy to resolve the crisis.