Trump warns of economic consequences for any country that supports Iran

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has warned Washington’s allies that they must choose between supporting or opposing the United States’ efforts to economically isolate Iran, as President Donald Trump moves to intensify pressure on Tehran.

“This is going to be the greatest coordinated economic isolation in the history of the world. And we are going to them and saying you are either with us or against us,” Bessent told US broadcaster CNBC in an interview.

Asked whether Washington would pressure China to join the campaign, Bessent said “many conversations are best to have in private”, while urging Beijing “to get with the programme”.

Bessent said the administration’s plan to sharply increase sanctions and economic pressure on Iran would ultimately lead to the collapse of the country’s government.

“It is going to work in Iran and we are going to collapse this regime,” he said, reiterating that Washington’s campaign would amount to an unprecedented level of coordinated economic isolation.

Bessent also said the expanded economic pressure could reduce the likelihood of the United States resuming large-scale military operations against Iran. “If we are doing the maximum economic pressure, then that means that likely there will not be a large-scale kinetic restart,” he said.

Treasury secretary said he would hold a press conference on Monday to outline the administration’s next steps on Iran. “I’m going to talk about exactly what we’re going to do,” Bessent said.

Iran condemns new US economic sanctions as ‘hostile action’

Iran’s foreign ministry has condemned a new round of US economic sanctions against the country, describing the measures as a violation of international law and an attempt to undermine Iran’s sovereignty.

In a statement posted on X, the ministry said Washington had announced “comprehensive economic sanctions” against Iran despite repeatedly claiming that its sanctions were directed at the government rather than the Iranian people.

Tehran said there was no legal or economic justification for the measures, arguing that the sanctions violated the principles of international law and the sovereignty of states.

Iran described the sanctions as part of a broader US policy that threatened the international system and undermined established rules governing relations between states.

The ministry also condemned what it described as the explicit targeting of Iranian citizens and entities, saying the latest measures represented a continuation of Washington’s hostile policies towards Tehran.

“Economic sanctions and pressure are the other side of the coin of war and military aggression,” the ministry said.

It also described Washington’s announcement of the new sanctions as “a continuation of a policy that has already been tested and failed”, while accusing the US of actions it said amounted to violations of international law.

The foreign ministry said Iran would not submit to such pressure and would respond to what it called hostile US actions.

It reaffirmed that the Iranian government and people would continue to defend the country’s sovereignty and national interests, stressing that Washington’s sanctions would not force Tehran to abandon its position.

Egypt, Qatar stress coordination to reach ‘final, sustainable agreement’

Egypt and Qatar have stressed the need for continued close coordination to reach a “final, sustainable agreement” to end the Middle East war while addressing the concerns of Gulf states, according to a statement from Qatar’s foreign ministry posted on X.

The two countries discussed the latest regional developments and diplomatic efforts aimed at de-escalating tensions, containing conflicts and strengthening security and stability across the region.

“Discussions also covered the latest regional developments, and the diplomatic efforts exerted to de-escalate tensions, contain conflicts, and enhance security and stability in the region,” the statement said.

Egypt and Qatar also underscored the importance of reopening the Strait of Hormuz and ensuring the security, safety and freedom of maritime navigation.

They stressed that the uninterrupted flow of international trade through the key waterway was essential to regional and global economic stability.

Qatari FM says no party should ‘blackmail’ others over Strait of Hormuz

Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani has said traffic in the Strait of Hormuz must go back to what it was prior to the US-Israeli war on Iran, with no party to the conflict “blackmailing” the other, Al Jazeera reported on Thursday.

“The consequences of this war were grave, not only on the Gulf region but elsewhere in the world,” the FM told reporters at a press conference following high-level discussions in El Alamein, Egypt.

“We need the situation to go back to what it used to be before,” he said, adding, “We condemn any threats in this regard in any obstacles.”

Saudi Arabia will be unable to contain Yemen’s Houthis: IRGC

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have warned that Saudi Arabia will not be able to contain the Houthis in Yemen as the rebels ramp up attacks on the kingdom, AFP reported.

“Saudi Arabia will certainly be unable to contain Yemen and Ansarullah or remain safe from their attacks,” Guards spokesman Hossein Mohebi told Defa Press, using another name for the Houthis.

“As we have seen in recent days, the more Saudi Arabia attacks, the more it is hit in return.”

Iran’s Araghchi says Trump’s threats a ‘diversion’ from US debt, surging interest costs

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called US President Donald Trump’s comments on economic consequences an attempt to divert American public opinion from domestic financial problems, including record debt and rising interest rates.

He said Washington’s insistence on policies he described as failed would bring further failures and alienate Iranians.

“America’s economic terrorism threatens the global economy and the national sovereignty of countries around the world,” he said on X.

Trump’s social media threats and announcements do not always get implemented as written, and he did not say what specific steps the US would take against such a country, which would appear to include US allies that have helped mediate peace talks, but he did not identify any.

Iranian Deputy FM says US heading towards ‘next failure’ in war with Iran

Deputy Foreign Minister for legal and international affairs Kazem Gharibabadi said on Thursday that “They claim Iran is on the brink of collapse and hanging by a thread, yet they beg all their allies to help them!”

Referring to the US without taking its name, he said that the “problem with wrong calculations” was that to cover for them the US would be “forced to create a bigger failure for themselves.”

“The military war didn’t yield results, so now they’ve named the next failure ‘economic war'”, he added.

Ghalibaf blames US for regional conflicts, Gulf disruptions

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf met Faiq Zaidan, president of Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council, in Baghdad as part of his ongoing visit to the country, according to IRNA.

He blamed the United States for recent conflicts and instability in the region, including disruptions in Persian Gulf energy routes.

In meetings with Iraqi leaders, Ghalibaf highlighted opportunities in bilateral relations and said Iran and Iraq played an important regional role among Islamic and Arab countries.

Iran executes man over charges related to January protests, state media says

Iran ‌executed a man on ​Thursday ​over charges related to ⁠January’s ​nationwide protests, ​state media reported.

State media identified ​the person ​as Qaem Hosseini, ‌a ⁠foreign national, who, it said, ​took ​part ⁠in events that ​led to ​the ⁠killing of security ⁠force ​members ​during the protests.

Trump warns of economic consequences for any country that supports Iran

​Trump warned of economic consequences against any country that provided “any type of lifeline to Iran” as the US ‌looks to resolve a war it began alongside Israel nearly six months ago.

Thousands of people have been killed in the war, which quickly drew in countries across the Gulf, and global markets have been shocked as Iran flexed its ability to control shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, through which ​about a fifth of the world’s traded oil passed before February.

The US and Iran have twice announced ceasefire agreements, in ​April and June, designed to restore the free flow of shipping through Hormuz to pre-war levels ⁠on the way towards ending the conflict, but both quickly crumbled even as Israel has largely withdrawn from the fighting, instead focusing attacks on civilian infrastructure in Lebanon.

In a ​message posted on social media on Wednesday evening, Trump promised “Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale,” although details were scant. Iran has ​weathered continuous punishing economic sanctions for nearly 50 years, since the Islamic Revolution of 1979.

Read: Trump says negotiations with Iran could resume ‘maybe at some point’

“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,” Trump wrote.

On ⁠Tuesday, the United Arab Emirates, which hosts a major US military base, announced it was suspending all trade activities, commercial exchanges and financial transactions with Iran until further notice. The announcement came after the UAE defence ministry said it had detected two missiles launched from Iran that fell into the sea, a report Iran dismissed as baseless.

China buys more than 80% of Iran’s shipped oil, according to ​2025 data from analytics firm Kpler, ​but for the US to ⁠engage in further economic warfare with China, a major exporter to the US of vital rare-earth minerals, risks retaliation.

Iran remains open to dialogue with the US but does not confuse negotiations with surrender, ​Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, said on Tuesday, according to the semi-official ​Fars news agency. Mokhber ⁠said military pressure and sanctions would not break Iran’s resolve.

On Tuesday, Trump said no talks were taking place with Iran. A day earlier, Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and special envoy, struck an upbeat tone, saying talks with Iran were still underway and were “probably more robust” than ever.

Oil gains on Middle East supply concerns amid impasse in US-Iran war

Oil prices climbed on concerns the impasse in the US-Israeli war against Iran will continue to disrupt supply from the key Middle Eastern producing region and tighten global supplies.

Brent crude futures for October delivery rose 26 cents, or 0.28%, to $91.87 a barrel by 0939 PKT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures for September added 17 cents to $86 a barrel.

The more-active October WTI contract gained 12 cents, or 0.13%, to $89.91.

More than 750 US service members wounded since start of Iran war

The number of US service members wounded since the start of the Iran war has passed 750, according to the Defence Department’s war casualty database, CNN reported.

The Pentagon updated the database on Wednesday, recording more than 50 additional wounded soldiers, as talks between Tehran and DC to end the conflict remain at an impasse.

When totals in The Defense Casualty Analysis System for “Overseas Operations” are combined with totals for Operation Epic Fury, 18 service members have died, and 757 have been wounded since the US launched the war against Iran on February 28.