Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has strongly rejected a new threat of sanctions made by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, describing it as empty rhetoric. In a social media post, Ghalibaf said Americans know that no one takes such threats seriously and argued that the United States lacks the economic capacity to further restrict trade relations with other countries.

Ghalibaf also said Iran’s trading partners had already clarified their positions to Tehran. According to him, through media outlets and direct messages, they said they were not taking the US treasury secretary’s statements or threats seriously. His remarks signal that Iran does not intend to yield to Washington’s recent hardline stance.

The source says the situation has nevertheless placed Tehran before both diplomatic and military challenges. A slim hope for talks with the United States and normalization of bilateral relations remains, while Iran also faces continuing military threats. It says concerns have emerged about a prolonged war extending beyond regional boundaries or a renewed spread of conflict.