Iran’s armed forces will respond to new U.S. sanctions with ‘crushing, punishing and devastating’ measures, Major General Ali Abdollahi said on Friday, escalating tensions after Washington pledged to impose what it described as the toughest financial penalties in history.
The warning followed remarks by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who said he would outline further sanctions at a Monday press conference. Bessent has stated the measures aim to ‘collapse this regime,’ while noting that China imports half its energy from the Gulf—a region that includes Iran—and should therefore ‘get with the program.’ According to 2025 data from analytics firm Kpler, more than 80% of Iran’s shipped oil is purchased by China.
Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, acknowledged the economic strain on the population during a late Thursday address to Iranian and Iraqi businesspeople. ‘No matter how much military power we have, we won’t survive if people are hungry and we don’t have financial turnover, economic growth and national production,’ he said. Tehran has weathered near-continuous economic sanctions for nearly 50 years, dating to the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
The latest escalation comes amid a broader regional conflict involving the U.S. and Israel, which has killed thousands and drawn in Gulf nations. Iran has maintained sufficient missile and drone capabilities to disrupt oil tanker traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and strike regional rivals, while also targeting energy facilities and desalination plants of U.S. allies in the Gulf. The strait, which once carried about a fifth of all traded oil before February, remains a critical chokepoint for global energy supplies.
Diplomatic efforts to ease tensions have yielded limited progress. Iran and Oman have held separate talks to resume navigation through the narrow strait, though the U.S. has opposed any deal that would impose tolls on ships. Meanwhile, NATO’s top commander, U.S. Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich, convened a videoconference with allies at the chief of defence level to discuss supporting freedom of navigation in the region. A NATO spokesperson noted the discussions were facilitated by the alliance’s capabilities rather than constituting a formal NATO mission.
China’s embassy in Washington reiterated its stance that sanctions and pressure do not resolve the issue and called for diplomatic solutions. The renewed hostilities have contributed to higher global fuel prices and exacerbated economic challenges in Iran, where inflation remains elevated, the currency has weakened, and energy shortages persist.
U.S. President Donald Trump has warned of economic consequences for any country providing ‘any type of lifeline to Iran,’ reinforcing Washington’s determination to isolate Tehran economically and politically.
