US Treasury Secretary: We will impose new sanctions on Iran weekly

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in comments to Reuters on Sunday, suggested that the Treasury Department could announce new secondary sanctions on a weekly basis, aiming to increase economic pressure on Iran, with an initial focus on banks. Following the imposition of sanctions last Friday on an Egyptian Bank of Misr branch in the United Arab Emirates due to alleged financial ties with Iran, Bessent said in an interview that the next step could involve completely isolating an institution from the dollar-based financial system. Speaking ahead of the Group of Twenty finance ministers’ meeting, Bessent said, “You will see more of these measures every week.” He added, “We start with banks, telling them that it is unacceptable to hold Iranian funds or to assist the Iranian regime.” Bessent clarified that he intends to convey this message clearly to G20 finance ministers and central bank governors, urging them to sever economic ties with Iran, warning that failure to do so would result in secondary sanctions. The U.S. Treasury launched this initiative, dubbed the “Economic Exclusion Operation,” last week. Bessent said, “There can be no loopholes. You are either with us or with the Iranians.” Nevertheless, he said he disagrees with those who believe that sanctions on Iran will not succeed without imposing secondary sanctions on Chinese companies. He added that most of China’s purchases of Iranian oil have declined due to the U.S. blockade on the ports of the Islamic Republic, noting that the amount of Iranian oil stored on tankers has been decreasing, and said the “problem has been solved.”