Iran has vowed to resist an expanded US sanctions campaign aimed at further isolating its economy, while Iranian officials said Washington appeared interested in reviving stalled negotiations nearly six months into the conflict.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a new package of measures on Monday, warning countries, companies and financial institutions that continued trade with Iran could ultimately cost them access to the dollar-based financial system.
The measures included sanctions on 60 individuals, entities and vessels, but stopped short of targeting some of the most sensitive institutions involved in Iran’s oil trade, including major Chinese banks.
Bessent said Washington intended to enforce the restrictions aggressively but did not specify when secondary sanctions would be imposed on Iran’s trading partners, indicating that governments and companies would be given time to reduce their exposure.
Iranian officials responded defiantly.
Economy Minister Ali Madanizadeh said Tehran was prepared to retaliate against further pressure and argued that major powers, including China and Russia, would resist Washington’s attempts to isolate Iran.
“Our defence is no longer so defensive,” he told Iranian state television, warning Iran’s adversaries to expect a response.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps also threatened strikes against US interests and key energy routes if Iranian infrastructure came under renewed attack.
At the same time, Tehran suggested that diplomatic contacts were continuing behind the scenes.
Abbas Golroo, who heads the Iranian parliament’s foreign relations committee, said Pakistan’s army chief, Asim Munir, carried a message from Washington during a visit to Iran on Monday.
Golroo said the apparent purpose of the message was to revive the political process that had stalled after earlier negotiations collapsed.
The White House and US State Department did not immediately comment on the claim.
Pakistan has emerged as an intermediary between Washington and Tehran, with Pakistani officials saying Munir’s latest visit produced significant progress in discussions aimed at preventing further escalation and reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
Mohsin Naqvi, Pakistan’s interior minister, described the talks as constructive, while Mehdi Tabatabaei, an official in the Iranian president’s office, said the visit had produced “valuable diplomatic achievements” whose results would soon become clear.
The diplomatic activity comes as the conflict continues to disrupt global energy markets.
A tanker was struck by an unidentified projectile on Tuesday near the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations. The vessel was disabled roughly 17 kilometres northeast of Oman’s Ash Shishah.
Iran has retained the ability to threaten shipping despite suffering significant military losses during the conflict.
Oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz stood at roughly 5 million barrels per day on Monday, according to provisional Vortexa tracking data, compared with more than 20 million barrels per day before the war.
China, traditionally Iran’s largest oil customer, criticised Washington’s latest measures, saying its economic cooperation with Tehran was lawful and should not be disrupted.
The United States has so far avoided imposing sanctions on major Chinese financial institutions accused of facilitating Iranian oil transactions, amid concerns that Beijing could retaliate ahead of expected talks between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Iran and the United States signed an interim agreement in June intended to halt the conflict that began with US and Israeli attacks on Iran in February. The agreement quickly unravelled, however, and Iranian attacks on shipping resumed.
Thousands of people have been killed during the conflict, most of them in Iran and Lebanon. Iran’s conventional military capabilities have been substantially weakened and its economy has come under growing pressure, but Tehran continues to pose a threat to Gulf states and commercial shipping.
The condition of Iran’s nuclear programme also remains unclear, with Washington and Israel continuing to describe its destruction as a central objective of their campaign.