Iran condemns US plans for new sanctions, warns of impact on trade partners

Iran on Saturday vehemently denounced the United States' intention to announce new sanctions, asserting that such measures would exacerbate the Islamic Republic's economic struggles and negatively affect its major trading partners, particularly China.

Iranian officials framed the impending U.S. action as an overreach. Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei, stated on X that the planned sanctions represent an "assertion of extraterritorial sovereignty over every independent member state of the United Nations." He further argued that "Such secondary sanctions find no foundation in international law."

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Such secondary sanctions find no foundation in international law.

The U.S. Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, is slated to hold a press conference Monday to unveil what are described as "the toughest sanctions in history" against Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump has also pressured countries like China, a significant buyer of Iranian oil, to cease economic ties. China, however, has urged diplomatic solutions.

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We are telling all nearby countries not to join the U.S. economic war, otherwise we will consider them as enemies.

Adding to the tension, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, warned that Tehran would retaliate against any nation assisting the U.S. in its "economic war." "We are telling all nearby countries not to join the U.S. economic war, otherwise we will consider them as enemies," Rezaei declared on state television.

Meanwhile, the Strait of Hormuz remains largely paralyzed, with oil shipments at a standstill due to ongoing tensions. While the U.S. military facilitates the passage of millions of barrels of oil daily through the strait, Iran has threatened to target unauthorized oil tankers. In a recent development, Iran granted permission for a number of Iraqi oil tankers to transit the waterway following requests from Baghdad.

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They would love to make a deal, but they’re not ready to make the right deal, in my opinion.