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Sanctions Clash Over Sovereignty
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei condemned the United States’ plans to impose new economic sanctions on Iran, calling them “economic warfare” and “an assertion of extraterritorial sovereignty over every independent Member State of the United Nations.”
““The United States' declaration of new economic sanctions on Iran is far more than continued unlawful 'economic warfare' against a single country"”
Baqaei said Washington’s use of secondary sanctions against foreign banks, businesses and airports has “no foundation in international law,” and he linked the approach to a naval blockade that he said amounts to “military aggression.”
In response to the escalation, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that the Trump administration’s plan to “crush Iran’s economy” will likely negate the need for major U.S. military operations against the Islamic Republic.
Bessent also vowed the U.S. will create “the greatest coordinated economic isolation in the history of the world” against Iran, and he said he will hold a news conference on Monday to “talk about exactly what we’re going to do.”
Pressure, Isolation, and Hormuz
U.S. Vice President JD Vance said economic pressure is the United States’ “most effective tool” against Iran, describing the situation as “a delicate dance” while adding that “they felt a lot more pressure than we have.”
The CNBC report said shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remains a fraction of its levels before the U.S. launched its war against Iran on Feb. 28, with negotiations to reopen the strait stalled.
Kpler data cited by CNBC showed recently observed ship traffic through Hormuz remained low, with 10 crossings on Monday and two transits on Sunday.
Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf told an event in Baghdad on Friday that Muslim countries must make a plan to overcome “cruel” sanctions, according to a government summary of his comments.
Competing Narratives and Next Steps
Iran’s Foreign Ministry framed the sanctions as a threat to the UN-based inter-State system, with Baqaei warning that “The end result would be the complete erosion of sovereignty” and calling it “a recipe for an abysmal return to full-scale classic colonialism.”
““The end result would be the complete erosion of sovereignty””
The Anadolu Ajansı report said Baqaei argued that secondary sanctions violate the principle of sovereign equality under Article 2(1) of the UN Charter and the customary prohibition on intervention affirmed by the International Court of Justice in the Nicaragua case.
U.S. President Donald Trump, as described by Anadolu Ajansı, announced his intention to launch “the most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country,” and he warned that countries providing Iran with an economic “lifeline” would face severe economic consequences.
Bessent told CNBC he would hold a press conference on Monday to outline the administration’s next steps, saying “I’m going to talk about exactly what we’re going to do,” as the standoff continues and the Strait of Hormuz remains central to the pressure campaign.