Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday that the United States is entering the “endgame” against Iran, framing new sanctions as an economic counterpart to the Allied invasion of Normandy. In a post on X, he said the administration is launching “an economic onslaught against Iran’s financial connections,” a campaign he named “Operation Economic Outcast.”
Bessent invoked World War II, quoting Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill’s question about how to “bring the greatest pressure to bear on the enemy.” He claimed, “History has returned that question to Tehran.”
Expanding Secondary Sanctions
According to a Financial Times report summarized Monday by the Twitter account Unusual Whales, the Treasury is preparing to broaden secondary sanctions on countries and companies that do business with Iran, forcing trading partners to choose between Tehran and access to the dollar-based financial system.
President Donald Trump added Monday morning that he believes Iran is already “collapsing” under current sanctions and the U.S. naval blockade of Iran’s ports.
Bessent also noted that Iran’s currency, the rial, “has never been weaker and inflation has rarely been higher.” Independent data backs that up. Michael Doran of the Hudson Institute pointed out on X that the rial was a little over 700,000 to the dollar on the day Trump was elected to his second term and has lost about 65% of its value in less than two years. Doran added that in 1978, the rial was about 70 to the dollar, meaning it has lost 99.996% of its value over time.
Regional Reactions
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, warned other nations in the region not to join the administration’s “economic war” against Iran, saying the country would “retaliate in a seismic manner.”
In a notable development, the United Arab Emirates announced Sunday that it had halted all trade with Iran “until further notice,” citing Iranian ballistic missile attacks on the Emirates. The move is significant because the U.A.E. has long served as Iran’s export and financial hub.
China in the Crosshairs
Open Source Intel, a sanctions-tracking group, prepared a list of countries most exposed to the new measures, with China at the top. “China buys discounted Iranian oil through intermediary networks,” the group said. “The key question is whether Treasury moves beyond small refiners and targets major Chinese banks.” The group also floated the possibility of a 25% tariff on countries that trade with Iran, noting that Bessent’s announcement was scheduled for 2 PM EST.
Bessent, who previously worked for George Soros and famously helped crash the British pound, is not someone to underestimate, as one X user, Toni Johnson, reminded followers.
Source: pjmedia.com — https://pjmedia.com/vodkapundit/2026/08/24/bessent-reveals-economic-d-day-against-iran-n4956481
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. Do your own research and consult a licensed professional before making financial decisions.
