THE United States has expanded its sanctions regime against Iran and warned countries that continue doing business with Tehran that they could face exclusion from the US dollar-based financial system, escalating economic pressure as the conflict shows little sign of reaching a diplomatic resolution.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington was giving Iran’s trading partners time to sever their business ties rather than immediately imposing the most severe penalties.
“We are giving everyone the opportunity to remedy bad behavior. Why would I want to blow up the global financial system?” Reuters quoted Bessent saying at a news conference.
He declined to identify which countries would face penalties or specify when they would take effect, but made clear that Washington intended to use its financial leverage to pressure Iran’s international trading partners.
The Treasury Department separately announced sanctions against 60 individuals, entities and vessels, although the measures did not include Chinese financial institutions suspected of facilitating Iran’s oil trade.
Bessent warned that no country would be beyond Washington’s sanctions reach.
“We want to make clear here today that no one is above the reach of U.S. sanctions,” he said.
China, the biggest buyer of Iranian oil for several years, rejected Washington’s approach, with its Foreign Ministry saying sanctions and pressure tactics would not help resolve the dispute.
Beijing said it would take whatever steps were necessary to protect its interests.
Iran, meanwhile, warned that it was prepared to respond to the latest US measures.
Iranian Economy Minister Ali Madanizadeh said Tehran was ready to withstand the sanctions and accused its adversaries of seeking to launch an economic attack against the country.
“We are fully prepared for the U.S. sanctions,” Madanizadeh said.
“Naturally, the enemies intend to launch an economic terrorist attack on us, but we also have our own tools and know how to play the game. Our defense is no longer so defensive; the enemies should wait for an attack,” he told state television.
Brigadier General Hossein Mohebbi, a spokesperson for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, separately vowed that Iran would strike US vital interests and energy chokepoints if its infrastructure came under attack, Press TV reported.
The latest measures come almost six months after the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran, triggering a conflict that has disrupted shipping, reduced oil flows and inflicted economic damage across the region and beyond.
Thousands of people have been killed, most of them in Iran and Lebanon, while Iran has retained enough missile and drone capabilities to threaten Gulf states and oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.
The conflict has also brought shipping through the strategic waterway close to a standstill, adding to concerns over global energy supplies.
The precise condition of Iran’s nuclear programme remains unclear, despite US and Israeli efforts to destroy it.
Bessent said the Treasury had mapped the networks, facilitators and financial channels allegedly used by Iran to smuggle oil and evade sanctions.
He said Washington would work with its international partners to target sources of what he described as Iran’s “illicit revenue”.
The Treasury identified digital assets, technology, gold, aviation and shipping as five sectors being used by the Iranian government to support its economy and warned that entities operating in these areas could face sanctions.
The latest US pressure comes as Washington seeks to curb Iranian attacks on shipping in the Gulf and, more recently, in the Red Sea through regional allies.
Iran has also warned shipping operators over transit through the Strait of Hormuz without its permission, listing 45 vessels it said had violated its rules and threatening retaliation over ship-to-ship oil transfers involving those vessels.
With diplomatic efforts yet to produce a breakthrough, the latest sanctions have raised concerns that economic pressure could further escalate tensions between Washington and Tehran and add to uncertainty over global energy supplies. - August 25, 2026
