US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent announced on Monday the launch of “Operation Economic Outcast," which he described as an unprecedented US campaign aimed at isolating Iran economically and cutting off the sources of revenue available to the Iranian regime.
“Today, at President Trump's direction, the United States Treasury has begun Operation Economic Outcast, an unprecedented campaign against the Islamic Republic of Iran and its enablers," Bessent said.
Comparing the launch of the campaign to the beginning of the Allied campaign following D-Day during the Second World War, Bessent stated, “Today, in that same spirit, we are launching an economic onslaught against Iran's financial connections around the globe."
“Our objective is to sever every economic lifeline that sustains this tyrannical regime until Tehran stands alone," he added.
Bessent said that under President Donald Trump, the US is “no longer managing the Iranian threat. We are ending it," and said the strength of the US economy would allow Washington to conduct a sustained financial campaign alongside military action.
According to Bessent, Iran now faces a choice between “complete global isolation and a subsistence economy" and “a path back to normalcy with an opportunity to rejoin the global economy."
He said the Treasury Department has mapped the networks used by Iran to sell oil and evade sanctions and would now pursue a “zero-leakage approach" designed to block revenue used to finance the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Iranian regime.
“There will be no minimal breathing space for the regime to rebuild its capacity to inflict terror against America and the world," Bessent declared.
The Treasury Secretary also issued a warning to countries and entities that continue to facilitate Iranian economic activity, including through petroleum purchases and transportation, exchange houses, free trade zones, aviation, shipping, banking, and fuel transfers.
“The President is making phone calls to world leaders with specific requests to cease their interactions with the regime," Bessent said, adding that US officials were already seeing results.
“Those who stand with the United States will reap the rewards of our partnership. Those who tether themselves to the Iranian regime should expect to share in the isolation of a withering regime," he stated.
Bessent said teams from the Treasury Department, State Department, and US military were meeting with counterparts around the world and that countries had been given timelines to halt activities identified by Washington.
“If they do not take action, we will do so unilaterally through Treasury authorities," he warned.
Bessent said that any entity facilitating money laundering on Iran's behalf would be removed from the US dollar system, adding, “The clock just started ticking."
He announced new sectoral sanctions targeting five areas which he said Iran exploits abroad: digital assets, technology, gold, aviation, and shipping. He also said the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control was sanctioning more than 60 entities, individuals, and vessels accused of enabling Iran to procure nuclear and missile technology, conduct cyber operations, and generate oil revenue.
“This is a sustained campaign to collapse every last option for Iran," Bessent said. “An economic engagement of any kind with this murderous regime will expose those responsible to the full reach of American power."
Addressing those who continue to enable Tehran, Bessent warned, “No nation should expect to enjoy the rewards of our system while helping those who seek to destroy it."
“It is now a time for world leaders to make a decision between prosperity and isolation, peace and terror, America and Iran," he added. “The campaign we begin today will gather force with every day that follows, and it will not end until this regime stands alone."
Asked by a Reuters reporter whether the US could impose secondary sanctions on Chinese banks and other financial institutions facilitating Iranian transactions, Bessent said, “No one is above the reach of US sanctions."
“We know who they are. They know who they are. So when the hammer of US Treasury actions falls upon them, they will have no one to blame but themselves," he stated.
Bessent declined to identify the countries contacted by President Trump or disclose the timelines they had been given, but said the US does “not have infinite patience here."
“We are going to hold everyone accountable," he said in response to a subsequent question. “This is economic asphyxiation of this regime."
Asked about the United Arab Emirates, Bessent praised the UAE as “very good partners" and said he expected a broad array of countries to take similar steps as US engagement continued.
He also said further sanctions announcements were imminent.
“You will see a wave of sanctions when you leave this meeting today, and you should expect that cadence to continue," Bessent said. “I would expect that you will see a major announcement of a financial institution being sanctioned by the end of this week."
Asked why the US was providing countries and institutions time to change their conduct rather than immediately imposing secondary sanctions, Bessent said Washington was giving them “the opportunity to remedy bad behavior."
“We believe that it is important to level set and give people a cure period, but they should know that that will move very quickly and that we are serious," he said.
“Secondary sanctions are a very powerful tool," Bessent added. “We believe that a warning shot and a level set of expectations is appropriate. And if people do not want to meet our expectations, then we expect, and they should expect, that they will leave the dollar system."proach."