US Vice President JD Vance on Thursday said economic pressure remains the “most effective tool” available to Washington against Iran, while describing the approach as a “delicate dance”, CNN reported.
Vance acknowledged that oil prices had increased but said the administration was working to ensure energy supplies continued through the Strait of Hormuz.
Vance said the broader objective of the US policy was to prevent Iran from rebuilding its nuclear capabilities, CNN reported. In a statement issued on Thursday, the ministry said the sanctions were “another indication of the continuation of 73 years of hostility and animosity by US policymakers toward the Iranian people. Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf had earlier said Tehran would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until the United States fulfilled commitments under a 14-point Memorandum of Understanding, including lifting the blockade, releasing frozen Iranian assets and easing oil sanctions.
“What we are trying to do is create a changed reality on the ground, where not just we can say with confidence their facilities have been destroyed; we can also say with confidence they’re never going to try to rebuild, and that’s the phase that we’re in now,” he said, as per CNN. “The US economic sanctions against Iran, which target the fundamental human rights of every Iranian citizen, constitute ‘economic terrorism’ and ‘crimes against humanity’,” the statement said. Iran accused Washington of pursuing a policy that had already failed and said the new measures would not affect its determination to protect its independence and national sovereignty. “Economic sanctions and pressure are the other side of the same coin as war and military aggression,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry said. The ministry also said the US government and those responsible for the policy would bear responsibility for its consequences. “The Islamic Republic of Iran remains steadfast and determined in defending its security and national interests and confronting the US military, economic, political and psychological pressures and attacks,” it added. The statement followed US President Donald Trump’s announcement of what he described as the “most crushing economic operation ever taken” against Iran, warning countries providing financial, business or government support to Tehran of “tremendous economic consequences.
