The US tests "economic war" against Iran with the military front stalled

WashingtonIt doesn't seem like the military front advances, in the Gulf –the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln of the United States set sail last week for home amidst troop unrest – so the White House is returning to the old strategy of economic pressure; now, baptized with the concept of "economic war". Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced this Monday an "unprecedented campaign" of sanctions against Iran, for which he was unable to set a timetable.

Bessent has named the campaign Operation Economic Outlaw and compared it to the D-Day landings in Normandy, which marked a turning point in World War II. "Our goal is to cut off all economic support that sustains this tyrannical regime until Tehran is left alone," Bessent stated.

However, a journalist asked the secretary why he wasn't immediately imposing sanctions, following the logic of what was D-Day against the Nazis. But Bessent backed down: "We want to give everyone the opportunity to correct their bad behavior. Why should we make the global financial system collapse?". A reflection that perhaps stems from the experience of the last months with the Strait of Hormuz blocked.

In a statement released alongside the press conference, the U.S. Treasury stated that the sanctions are intended to target the network of companies chartering ghost tankers through the United Arab Emirates, China, Singapore, Switzerland, and other European countries. Asked whether Washington will impose sanctions on Beijing, which last year purchased nearly 80% of exported Iranian oil, Bessent replied: "Today we want to make it clear that no one is above U.S. sanctions. If they facilitate transactions and are part of the ecosystem that turns Iranian oil into money and repression, they will be subject to sanctions." The move comes one month before Chinese leader Xi Jinping visits his counterpart, Donald Trump, at the White House.

Bessent has assured that the US president is "making phone calls to world leaders with specific requests to end their interactions with the regime", but has not specified whether Trump will speak with Xi Jinping.

The new economic war that Washington wants to open with Iran comes after, at the end of June, the US Treasury announced that it was lifting some sanctions against Iranian oil for 60 days.