Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said maximum economic pressure on Iran will likely rule out a return to large-scale U.S. combat, as President Trump vowed penalties against any country still aiding Tehran. The remarks land as the war nears six months with no resolution and Iran keeps disrupting the Strait of Hormuz.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC on Thursday that maximum economic pressure on Iran will likely mean the U.S. does not need to restart large-scale combat, even as the war against Tehran approaches its sixth month without a diplomatic or military breakthrough.
Trump threatens allies with penalties
President Donald Trump said on Truth Social Wednesday evening that the U.S. will levy major economic penalties against any country that provides Iran with any type of lifeline, framing the push as an economic D-Day. Bessent, speaking on CNBC's Squawk on the Street, backed the approach. According to CNBC: "We are going to collapse this regime."
Bessent said the U.S. will tell allies they must choose sides, and that any nation still trading with, financing, or shipping oil for Iran will face the full force of the U.S. Treasury. He plans to lay out details at a news conference on Monday. The sanctions push will run alongside the ongoing U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports in the Gulf of Oman. Oil prices rose following Bessent's CNBC interview.
Economic toll mounts, but Hormuz risk persists
Trump has repeatedly claimed the U.S. has already crippled Iran's military and economy, describing Tehran as nearly defeated in his Wednesday night post. Iran's gross domestic product is believed to have contracted amid the war, while inflation has ballooned to historic highs, though some experts caution against assuming the economy is close to collapse.
Iran still threatens the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway that carried 20% of the world's oil trade before the war began. Tanker crossings remain sharply reduced despite the pressure campaign, and the United Arab Emirates said Wednesday it would halt all trade with Iran after new ballistic missile strikes. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi pushed back on X, warning that doubling down on the current approach would only bring further defeat and deepen Iranian resentment.
Source: CNBC
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