Not a single drop of oil would be exported from the Persian Gulf if the US continued its economic war against Iran, Tehran said on Sunday. The remarks came after US President Donald Trump announced the “most crushing economic operation” against Iran and warned countries doing business with Tehran of “tremendous” consequences.
“If the economic war continues, not a single drop of oil will be exported, neither through the Strait of Hormuz nor from anywhere in the Persian Gulf,” Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, wrote on X as Washington prepared to roll out fresh sanctions targeting Iran and its trade partners.
“Iran will regard any country’s participation in or support for America’s economic war against the Iranian people as an act of war.”
US, Iran entering ‘endgame’?
On Monday, US treasury secretary Scott Bessent spoke of Trump’s “economic D-Day” and said Washington was moving towards its strongest financial campaign yet against Tehran.
Bessent said the US was entering the “endgame” of its war on Iran and planned to use its economic powers to cut off financial channels supporting the Iranian government.
“We are now entering the endgame. At dawn begins an economic D-Day — the single greatest financial offensive ever marshaled against an adversary,” Bessent said. He also accused Iran of treating security guarantees as a form of “extortion” and said that Tehran was operating on the assumption that Iranian retaliation would be certain while US enforcement could be negotiated.
Trump created the conditions for the US government to use the full scope of its powers against Iran, he added. “Our objective is to sever every economic lifeline that sustains the tyrannical regime until Tehran stands alone,” Bessent said.
Trump announces sweeping sanctions
Trump said the US would launch an unprecedented campaign of economic pressure aimed at isolating Iran and cutting off sources of funding for Tehran.
“Today, I am announcing the most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country. This will be economic warfare and isolation on an unprecedented scale,” Trump wrote on Truth Social last Wednesday. Financial institutions, businesses, airports and government entities that provide support to Iran would face “tremendous” consequences, he said.
Trump also called for an immediate halt to activities he alleged were helping Tehran bypass sanctions, including oil smuggling, swap lines, cash transfers, exchange houses, ship registries and front companies.
Iranian Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf criticised the sanctions threat.
“Importing frozen meat to fix meat prices. Okay, that might work. What’s the plan for bonds, import frozen yields? Frozen homebuyers for housing? Frozen paychecks for wages? A frozen foreign policy delivers a frozen economy. The only thing still moving? The Iran boomerang,” he said earlier.
Oil falls again
Oil prices fell after two weeks of gains as markets awaited details of the US plan to isolate Iran economically. Brent crude slipped to around $93 a barrel, while WTI was near $86, Bloomberg reported.
Oil has gained more than 50% this year amid the US-Israeli war on Iran and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz. Oil flows in the Gulf remain disrupted due to security threats.
Strait of Hormuz remains key flashpoint
The vital oil artery is a major route for global energy shipments. This makes any prolonged disruption a potential threat to international oil supplies and trade.
Trump earlier claimed that the Strait of Hormuz was open and that ships were continuing to pass through.
Iranian officials, though, said Tehran would not reopen the waterway until Washington met conditions, including lifting the blockade, releasing frozen Iranian assets and easing oil sanctions. On Sunday, Iran’s Parliament agreed to charge fees on ships using the waterway.
