Iran has pledged to “attack” the U.S. financially after Washington unveiled a sweeping set of sanctions as part of ‘Economic D-Day', an attempt to further isolate Tehran and curb its access to the global financial system as the war between the two countries drags on.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent unveiled the measures as part of President Donald Trump’s announcement of the "most crushing economic operation" against Tehran, labeled “Operation Economic Outcast.”
"D-Day marked a historic campaign with our allies,” Bessent said Monday. “Today, in that same spirit, we are launching an economic onslaught against Iran's financial connections around the globe."
After the measures were announced, Tehran’s Economy Minister Seyed Ali Madanizadeh said the government was prepared to counter the newly-unveiled U.S. sanctions.
“They want to launch an economic terrorist attack against us. We also have our own tools, and we know the rules of this game,” he said in response to Bessent’s announcement during a televised interview with Iranian state media Monday.
“This time, they shouldn't think that our approach is purely defensive; they should also expect an attack from us.”
Although the Iranian minister did not elaborate on what such an attack would entail, he said the country had developed plans in preparation for the economic threats.
“Plans have been developed for various scenarios, including what actions should be taken if they attempt to cause damage in the financial sector or in the country's financial relations,” he said, adding that “the global financial system is not structured in a way that allows anyone to claim they can cut off” Iran’s economy.
During the announcement, Bessent stopped short of immediately imposing secondary sanctions on countries that trade heavily with Iran, instead favoring an approach that would give them time to decouple from that trade.
When asked why he was waiting to impose those sanctions, Bessent responded: "Why would I want to blow up the global financial system?"
“We believe that it is important to level set and give people a cure period, but they should know that that will move very quickly, and that we are serious,” he added.
Bessent did not name any countries that could face sanctions, but said "they know who they are."
China, one of Iran's biggest trading partners and the primary buyer of Iranian oil exports, has already pushed back against the threat.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said China-Iran cooperation "should not be disrupted or undermined," noting that it had been conducted in accordance with international law.
“China has made clear on many occasions its firm opposition to illicit unilateral sanctions that have no basis in international law or the authorization of the U.N. Security Council. Economic warfare and maximum pressure provide no solution,” Jian said during a press conference Tuesday.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned nearly 60 entities, individuals, and vessels connected to Iran’s regime, while also gaining powers to impose additional sanctions on any person operating within the digital assets, technology, gold, aviation, and shipping sectors of the Iranian economy.
Iranian leaders had previously dismissed the impact of extensive economic sanctions on the country and instead sought to highlight struggles within the U.S. economy.
Trump, meanwhile, claimed Monday that Iran is "completely collapsing,” without elaborating on what he based the claim.
Strait of Hormuz attack raises stakes after sanctions announcement
Following Bessent's economic announcement, an oil tanker was hit by a projectile off the coast of Oman in the Strait of Hormuz, according to a report by U.K. Maritime Trade Operations.
The incident highlights the continued danger for shipping companies attempting to transit the key waterway, through which roughly a fifth of the world's oil supply passed before the war. The closure of the Strait has rattled energy markets and thrown the global economy into disarray.
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) spokesperson Hossein Mohebbi had previously threatened heavy blows against vital U.S. interests and energy chokepoints if Iran’s economy was targeted with sanctions.
"The U.S. President says that he ordered an economic war and launched the most severe economic campaign against Iran,” he said, as reported by Iranian state media Sunday. “We have repeatedly announced that we have scenarios in place for any hostile action by the enemy. One of the enemy’s hostile actions is economic measures and warfare.”
The attack came as a high-level delegation from Pakistan, which has been a key mediator between the United States and Iran, was wrapping up meetings in Tehran aimed, once again, at bringing a return to negotiations and an end to the nearly six-month-old war.
The cease-fire established under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Washington and Tehran expired on Aug. 17, but the agreement had already deteriorated after each side presented differing interpretations of its terms.
Both parties had vied for control of the Strait of Hormuz, eventually leading to tit-for-tat strikes, the reimposition of the American blockade on Iranian ports, and minimal dialogue between Washington and Tehran.
Iran has since released a comprehensive list of demands for the U.S. to meet, which Trump immediately rejected. Both sides have since shown little sign of progress in negotiations, despite relatively limited fighting in recent weeks.
