Nearing the six-month mark of the Iran war and facing diminishing stockpiles of key weapons, the Trump administration is touting a crushing financial campaign against Tehran, promising an “economic D-Day” against a country that has so far withstood nearly five decades of punishing American sanctions.
President Donald Trump announced this week that the US would be imposing an “unprecedented” level of economic warfare and isolation on Iran
It reflects the dire reality Trump faces with an increasingly unpopular war he can’t seem to end just months before pivotal midterm elections that will decide whether his Republican Party keeps control of Congress. Whether out of desperation or strategy, the president is refocusing America’s might on bringing Iran to its knees through an accelerated sanctions campaign against one of the most economically penalized countries in the world. China and India, however, are major buyers of Iranian oil. “It’s time for our allies and the rest of the world to make a decision.
With sparse details, President Donald Trump announced this week that the US would be imposing an “unprecedented” level of economic warfare and isolation on Iran, aiming to force its leadership to cave to demands to end its nuclear program and fully reopen the crucial Strait of Hormuz to oil and natural gas tankers. He did not say exactly whom would be targeted as part of this next phase of the administration’s “Operation Economic Fury,” which earlier had focused on entities and individuals that buy oil from or bank with Iran. “If you insist on doing business with them, then the US Treasury and US government will put its full might and force against you,” Bessent said. He said the decision this week by the United Arab Emirates — once one of Tehran’s most important trading partners — to suspend trade with Iran over an alleged missile attack will only further isolate the government. Ali Vaez, Iran director at the International Crisis Group, said the Trump administration’s decision to take its own “maximum pressure” policy to new heights with military action seems to ignore years of US foreign policy lessons that show Iran does not respond well to pressure.
