After nearly two weeks of strikes on Iran, the Trump administration is planning to bank on a different weapon: economic pressure.
US President Donald Trump has said he halted the bombing to allow diplomacy to progress.
US President Donald Trump put a stop to strikes on Iran after 13 consecutive days.
On Monday, he claimed Iran sought talks on a possible deal, although they denied requesting direct negotiations, AP reported.
Iran reportedly earned an estimated $23 billion in oil revenue during the first half of the year.
After nearly two weeks of strikes on Iran, the Trump administration is planning to bank on a different weapon: economic pressure. US President Donald Trump has said he halted the bombing to allow diplomacy to progress. (AP) As Washington tries to push Tehran back to the negotiating table, senior US officials believe sanctions, financial restrictions and a naval blockade could ultimately inflict more damage on Iran than the bombing itself, Axios reported. US President Donald Trump put a stop to strikes on Iran after 13 consecutive days. He said he wanted to give diplomacy another chance. On Monday, he claimed Iran sought talks on a possible deal, although they denied requesting direct negotiations, AP reported. ‘Iranians want money’: US US officials say the real pressure is now coming from Iran's worsening economic troubles. "The Iranians want to stop being bombed and they want money. But that's almost in reverse order. They really want the money first," a senior administration official told Axios. Intelligence reports and public data suggest Iran is facing growing financial stress, including gasoline shortages despite being one of the world's biggest oil producers, according to US officials. ALSO READ | Oil extends decline as Trump's US-Iran talks remark fuels hopes of end to West Asia conflict Officials also claim Tehran is struggling to finance its military and allied groups. "Intelligence is picking up that the Iranians are complaining they can't pay their fighters," a US official said. "Why? Because of the financial pressures. Because of Treasury. Because of what [Treasury Secretary] Scott Bessent is doing." "They're in danger of runs on banks. There are gasoline shortages in this giant oil-rich country," the official added. "They're more scared of Treasury than the War Department."
Donald Trump has said he halted the bombing to allow diplomacy to progress. (AFP)
The Trump administration says it has sanctioned more than 1,000 individuals, ships and aircraft as part of its new "maximum pressure" campaign targeting Iran's oil exports, banking network, shipping industry and weapons procurement. US officials also claim that during earlier negotiations, Iranian representatives repeatedly raised access to frozen funds and sanctions relief as top priorities. "They're begging Steve [Witkoff] and Jared [Kushner] for cash. They're desperate for it," one of the officials claimed to Axios. Trump said he halted the bombing to allow diplomacy to progress. "The overall stockpiles aren't depleted or at zero," the official said. "When you have to consider pulling from stockpiles around the world, that comes with risks, and you have to present that to the commander in chief. He decides. He's the decider." Trump also insisted the US continues to have sufficient military resources. "I have a lot of patience," Trump told reporters. Watch | Mojtaba names new ‘enemies’: Did US allies in Gulf quietly open their bases for brutal Iran strikes? Will this approach work? Iran reportedly earned an estimated $23 billion in oil revenue during the first half of the year. Brett Erickson, an analyst with Obsidian Risk Advisors, said that sanctions are unlikely to deliver the desired outcome. He called it "fairly hilarious." "More sanctions? On Iran? Look at what Treasury and OFAC have done over the last two weeks the conflict has resumed. They’ve barely released ANY new sanctions, and the only notable one targeted the Shamkhani network that Iran had obviously built redundancies….There’s nothing really LEFT to sanction at this point that would make a difference. That’s been the case for months now. The BLOCKADE you can certainly argue for, but given we just let 80M barrels of oil waltz through the blockade line during the 27 days of the MOU… good luck." Erickson wrote on X.
