Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent called on China to help enforce President Donald Trump’s economic war on Iran.
Trump announced the escalating sanctions against Iran in a Truth Social post on Wednesday. “No one has given the Islamic Republic of Iran a greater opportunity to make a Deal than me. TRAGICALLY, for them, they have failed to take it. Therefore, 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,” the President wrote.
He continued, “Today, I am also announcing that ANY country that allows its financial institutions, businesses, airports, or government entities to provide any type of lifeline to Iran will itself face TREMENDOUS Economic Consequences. Oil smuggling, swap lines, cash transfers, exchange houses, ship registries, front companies — It all needs to stop NOW. You know who you are. This will be an ECONOMIC D-DAY.”
On Thursday, Bessent said Beijing needed to “get with the program” on the economic war against Tehran. “Keep in mind, the Chinese get 50% of their energy from the Gulf. So, it would do them a big service to get with the program,” Bessent told CNBC. The Treasury Secretary said Washington and Beijing were having ongoing private conversations.
Bessent went on to say the ramped-up economic warfare made restarting the war between the US and Iran less likely. “If we are doing the maximum economic pressure, then that means that likely there will not be a large-scale kinetic restart,” he said.
However, Responsible Statecraft vice president Trita Parsi argued Iran is likely to escalate the conflict in response to economic pain. “Tehran does not appear overly concerned—for now. But that could change. If Trump refuses to return to the MOU, or succeeds in turning the balance of economic pain against Iran, Tehran will face a far harsher reality,” he wrote at Substack on Wednesday. “Between surrender or escalation, Iran will almost certainly choose escalation. Even if Trump has gained the economic upper hand, Tehran still believes it holds a military advantage.”
