Iran warns neighbors against joining US 'economic war'
Khan Younis
Iran has warned neighboring countries they will be treated as enemies and have their interests targeted if they join the US economic campaign against Tehran. The warning came from Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, amid escalating US pressure and ongoing conflict.
Iran has threatened to treat neighboring countries as enemies and target their interests if they join the US campaign to cripple its economy.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, issued the warning in an interview with state television IRIB on Saturday.
“We tell all neighboring countries not to join the US economic war. Otherwise, we will consider them enemies,” Rezaei told IRIB.
The remarks come as the administration of US President Donald Trump escalates economic threats. On Wednesday, Trump announced his government would pursue the “most severe economic campaign” against Iran as part of the ongoing conflict between the two nations.
The US and Israel have been at war with Iran since February 28, when the two allies launched their first round of strikes on Tehran. In addition to threatening Iran's economy, Trump vowed “massive economic consequences” for any country that aids Iran.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent echoed the threats, saying, “You are either with us or against us.”
In Saturday's interview, Rezaei described Iran's regional strategy as a three-stage process, beginning with an effort to de-escalate tensions with neighbors.
“First we negotiate. Then we try to separate them from the US with goodwill rhetoric, because we really do not want to expand the war,” he said.
Any country that continues to side with the US would be given time to reconsider. “But in the third stage, we will definitely act.”
Although the US has not halted military operations against Iran, Rezaei argued that the Trump administration is betting that economic pressure will split Iranian society and force an end to the war.
“They hope that, if possible, they will break our unity with economic pressure, and a group of protesters will take to the streets, and in some way, they will support the US F-35s,” he said.
Negotiations to end the conflict have stalled in recent months, following the failure of a June 17 memorandum calling for an “immediate and permanent end to military operations.”
Control of the Strait of Hormuz, the major shipping route off Iran's coast, remains a critical flashpoint between the US and Iran. Iran quickly closed traffic through the strait early in the war, sending oil and fertilizer prices soaring.
Many Middle Eastern countries that previously relied on the strait for exports have begun seeking alternative trade routes. But Rezaei warned that Iran would target those alternative oil shipping routes if regional nations join the US economic war plan.
Iran's Foreign Ministry on Saturday also condemned US measures as an assertion of “extraterritorial sovereignty” over United Nations member states. Tehran is also believed to be considering expanding its target list beyond the Middle East, with media reports suggesting it could strike US European allies that support Trump's operations.
