Lacking a military solution against Iran, Trump turns to economic suffocation

United States President Donald Trump in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, August 21, 2026. JACQUELYN MARTIN / AP Six months after the start of military operations against Iran, the United States has found itself in a state of limbo. Neither war nor peace. Neither the promised overwhelming victory nor a humiliating withdrawal of the forces deployed in the region. Refusing to acknowledge the reality of this strategic drift, which has led to a worrying reduction in sophisticated missile stockpiles, President Donald Trump has chosen to return to an option already used by successive US administrations: economic sanctions. "Iran is completely collapsing," Trump claimed on his Truth Social network on Monday, August 24. A few days earlier, his administration had promised an "economic D-Day," referring to the Normandy landings on June 6, 1944. Trump called on all allies to join him and issued a warning to those who might take part in parallel channels that would allow Tehran to export its oil, risking exposure to secondary US sanctions. "Any country that allows its financial institutions, businesses, airports or government entities to provide any type of lifeline to Iran will ​itself face tremendous economic consequences," he warned. You have 87.4% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.