by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Chief
(Worthy News) – U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday that the United States is dramatically escalating financial and military pressure on Iran, describing the strategy as a deliberate effort to “suffocate” the regime and cut off its ability to function.
Speaking on “Sunday Morning Futures,” Bessent revealed that President Donald Trump has ordered the Treasury Department to unleash what he called “economic fury,” targeting Iran’s financial networks, offshore assets, and any channels used to fund the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
“The way to think about that — we were running a marathon over the past 12 months, and now we are sprinting toward the finish line,” Bessent said. “We are suffocating the regime, and they are not able to pay their soldiers.”
According to Bessent, the strategy involves both financial warfare and physical enforcement. The U.S. Navy is actively supporting what he described as a “literal blockade,” while Treasury officials are aggressively tracking and freezing Iranian assets worldwide. He accused the IRGC of long-standing corruption, saying it has “been stealing from the Iranian people for years,” and pledged that recovered funds would ultimately be preserved for the Iranian people.
Bessent also warned that Iran’s oil sector is nearing a breaking point. With storage facilities filling rapidly and exports constrained, the regime may soon be forced to shut down oil wells. He suggested that this pressure could ripple through global markets, ultimately driving oil prices lower as non-Iranian supply increases.
“The futures market is already signaling lower prices months out,” Bessent noted, adding that hundreds of oil tankers are waiting in the region to deliver supply once restrictions ease.
He further indicated that several Gulf nations have quietly assisted the United States in identifying Iranian financial assets, especially following what he described as Tehran’s “miscalculation” in attacking neighboring countries.
The escalating pressure campaign underscores a broader U.S. strategy to force Iran back to the negotiating table while weakening its regional influence — a move that could reshape both Middle Eastern geopolitics and global energy markets in the months ahead.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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