US President Donald Trump has issued a stark warning to countries supporting Iran amid the ongoing war.
The commander in chief promised to impose “economic consequences” on anyone doing so, although he did not provide details about what those measures would entail.
The threat was dismissed by Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, as an attempt to divert attention from the US’s own crisis.
Countries supporting Iran amid rising tensions with the US now risk facing “tremendous” consequences, President Donald Trump has stated.
The US president took to his Truth Social platform on Wednesday to announce his intention, though he did not specify which countries he was referring to.
“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 noted in the post.
The real estate mogul further described his plans as a form of “economic warfare” intended to isolate Iran and force it to submit to US demands as the war approaches the mid-year mark.
“Today, I am announcing the MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY!” he said about the Middle Eastern country.
Trump Says Iran ‘Failed’ To Take His Deal
3Over the past few months, there have been reports of negotiations between the two sides aimed at ending the war.
Those discussions have raised the possibility of a deal, but no agreement has been officially announced. This has led Trump to once again accuse Iran’s leadership of being “unbelievably duplicitous.”
Now, in his post on Truth Social, the president said he had given Iran “a greater opportunity to make a deal” but claimed that “they have failed to take it.”
Trump also described Iran’s refusal to reach a deal as tragic for the country and called on US allies to help isolate Iran and counter the threat posed by Tehran amid his proposed economic sanctions.
Iran Fires Back At Trump’s Economic Threat
Trump’s remarks elicited a response from the country’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, on X.
The politician claimed that the US president was merely pontificating to distract from the country’s economic crisis.
“The so-called “Economic D-Day” is a diversion from America’s own crisis: unprecedented debt & surging interest costs,” he wrote on the social media outlet. “Doubling down on failed policies will only bring further defeat—and enmity of Iranians. US economic terrorism threatens the global economy and sovereignty worldwide.”
Adding to his post, Araghchi shared images of reports on the US gross national debt reaching $40 trillion, including one from The New York Times.
Trump Claims Strait Of Hormuz Is ‘Open And Operating’
3At the center of the conflict between Iran and the US is the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which roughly a fifth of the world’s oil supply passes before the war.
Recently, Iranian Parliament Speaker and senior negotiator Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf told a parliamentary session that the region would remain closed until the US fulfills certain conditions it has set.
This, he claimed, includes “lifting the naval blockade, releasing frozen assets, lifting oil sanctions and ending threats and military operations on all fronts.”
However, Trump fired back with a claim on his Truth Social platform that the strait is “open and operating.” He also noted that his country’s naval blockade hasn’t been ended and that the US Navy has removed or detonated water mines placed by Iran in the strait.
Trump Says He May Turn Strait Of Hormuz Into US Territory
3For now, there is no confirmation as to when the war will end, as negotiations appear to have stalled.
However, Trump believes that the US will emerge victorious in the end and take home a prize.
“After we finish defeating Iran, which is being very badly defeated — pretty soon I’ll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States,” Trump said at a rally in New York state last week.
Despite the seriousness of his remarks, there has been no official announcement from the White House regarding any US plans to annex the strait.
