US Launches Economic Campaign Against Iran Amid Escalating Tensions
The United States has launched a new economic campaign to isolate Iran and cut off its financial networks. Dubbed 'Operation Economic Outcast,' this initiative aims to target Iran's sources of revenue, including oil trade, and pressure foreign companies and governments to sever ties with Tehran.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the campaign on Monday, warning that no country or company is beyond the reach of US sanctions. He emphasized that entities facilitating Iranian transactions or helping turn Iranian oil into revenue will be targeted.
The campaign focuses on five areas critical to Iran's economy: digital assets, technology, gold, aviation, and shipping. The US Treasury also announced sanctions against 60 entities, vessels, and individuals in countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, and Switzerland, accusing them of helping Iran evade sanctions.
Bessent compared this campaign to the Allied D-Day invasion during World War II, calling it an 'economic D-Day.' He presented Iran with two possible paths: continued isolation and a subsistence economy or a return to normal economic relations with the international community.