Iran03 September, 20262 min read
U.S. Sanctions Turkish Entities Golden Global Portfolio Unitatem, Golden Global Varliq Carama, Yatireem Bankasi
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United States Treasury sanctions three Turkish Golden Global entities for Iran-related financing. Bank and subsidiaries accused of facilitating tens of millions of dollars in IRGC-Quds Force transactions.
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New sanctions and threats
The United States imposed new sanctions on Friday targeting three Iran-related entities based in Turkey, including Golden Global Portfolio Unitatem, Golden Global Varliq Carama, and Golden Global Yatireem Bankasi, as Washington pressed for a broader agreement than the memorandum of understanding with Iran.
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said Washington will not hold talks with Iran unless it stops firing on ships in the Strait of Hormuz, while he also said the Iranians "are losing capabilities day by day."
The U.S. Treasury also issued a general license allowing the termination of transactions with the sanctioned entities, and the campaign was described as part of Trump’s economic pressure on Tehran six months after the start of the conflict between Washington and Iran.
In response, an Iranian army spokesperson said Iranian forces will carry out "preemptive operations" whenever they feel threatened, considering that this is within international law, and Iran’s chief justice Gholam-Hossein Ghalam Heidari said the United States and Israel have waged an illegal war against Iran.
Negotiations, back channels, and shipping
The Financial Times, citing informed sources, said the Trump administration told the concerned parties it would not return to the memorandum of understanding with Iran and instead seeks a new, more comprehensive agreement that includes the Hormuz Strait and the Iranian nuclear program.
Diplomatic sources quoted by the Financial Times said there are no longer direct talks between Washington and Tehran, but intermediaries have kept back channels open and are working on a framework for negotiations on a possible new agreement.
The same reporting said Washington told intermediaries it wants to keep the Hormuz Strait open regardless of the outcome of a potential agreement between Tehran and Muscat, while Pence said Washington does not target civilians in its operations "and will never do so."
Separately, the U.S. Central Command announced it has redirected 87 ships, halted 3, and boarded two to ensure compliance with the sanctions on Iran, as the U.S. Vice President reiterated that Washington will not hold talks unless Iran stops firing on commercial ships.
EU alignment and financial lifelines
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the European Union has formally joined Washington’s campaign to isolate Iran from the global financial system, and he wrote that the bloc was sending a clear message to the Iranian regime.
Euronews reported that the European Commission’s statement published on Monday backed the U.S. campaign without formally committing the EU to it, and it quoted the U.S. framing that Washington "will not stop until every last lifeline is cut."
The sanctions drive was described as part of Operation Economic Outcast, with the U.S. Treasury targeting Golden Global Bank and its subsidiaries and alleging they facilitated transactions "worth tens of millions of dollars" for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force.
In the same reporting, Bessent warned that financial institutions with ties to Iran will "continue to find out the hard way that we are serious about Operation Economic Outcast," while the U.S. also issued a general license allowing transactions necessary to wind down dealings with the sanctioned entities.