Newsman: The US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent unveiled a new round of U.S. economic sanctions on Iran on Monday, calling it an “economic onslaught” against the country’s global financial connections.
“Our objective is to sever every economic lifeline that sustains this tyrannical regime until Tehran stands alone,” he said. The administration is calling the measures “Operation Economic Outcast.”
Secretary Bessent called “its enablers.”
Bessent, though did not name China in his introductory remarks on Monday criticized the country last week for historically buying about 90% of Iran’s oil. China is Iran’s biggest oil customer.
When a reporter asked whether Chinese banks could be targeted by the administration’s new measures, Bessent said, “We want to make clear here today that no one is above the reach of U.S. sanctions.”
“The president is making phone calls to world leaders with specific requests to cease their interactions with the regime,” Treasury Secretary Bessent said. “We are giving everyone the opportunity to remedy bad behavior.”
He wouldn’t spell out a timeline of when Iran’s biggest trade partners — including China — could face secondary sanctions. “Why would I want to blow up the global financial system?” he said.
A statement from the Treasury Department said that among the targets of Monday’s sanctions is “a network of brokers, companies, and shadow fleet vessels operating across the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Switzerland, Europe, and other regions to transport Iranian oil and channel revenue to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC‑QF) and other regime elements.”
The Trump administration has been calling this “D-Day” for the Iranian economy. The Treasury said it has mapped out “networks, facilitators and financial channels” that enable Iran.
