US President Donald Trump said he is watching the outcome of newly imposed economic sanctions on Iran, according to an Al Jazeera report published on August 22, 2026. He again claimed that Iran has become economically and militarily weaker under US pressure and said Tehran is very interested in reaching an agreement with Washington.

Trump said, “We are watching what happens,” when asked about the effectiveness of the new sanctions. His remarks reiterated his previous position that sanctions are an important tool for increasing economic pressure on Tehran amid longstanding tensions between Iran and the United States.

Iran’s foreign minister responded in a social media post, rejecting Trump’s assessment. The minister said the US plan for economic warfare against Iran is bound to fail. Iran has described US sanctions as economic warfare, while Washington has continued to use sanctions to increase pressure on Tehran.

Middle East expert Ross Harrison says US economic pressure will not be enough to force Iran to yield, despite President Donald Trump describing the pressure campaign as “D-Day.” Harrison made the comments in an interview with Al Jazeera published on August 22, 2026. He said Iranian people have already been living through an economic “D-Day” since maximum-pressure sanctions were reimposed after the United States left the 2015 nuclear deal.

Harrison said Trump is using military terminology to describe economic pressure because military action has failed to create conditions that would make Iran surrender. He expressed considerable doubt that the economic campaign can achieve the outcome Trump expects.

According to Harrison, China remains Iran’s most important source of support and could be its largest lifeline. However, he said US action targeting that relationship could carry major risks for Washington, as China also has various forms of leverage against the United States. He noted the possibility of a meeting next month in Washington between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Trump, saying the central question is whether the US is prepared to damage its relationship with China while increasing pressure on Iran.

US President Donald Trump said he views the Strait of Hormuz as “American territory” during a Friday rally in South Carolina, where he campaigned for Senate candidate Darlene Graham. His remarks came as a US military blockade of Iranian ships and ports was under way and his administration sought talks to end the continuing war with Iran.

Trump said he did not know whether “we have won” because he regarded the strait as US territory. He also raised the prospect of further attacks on Iran, asking whether he had to drop more bombs there. Graham is seeking to permanently fill the Senate seat previously held by her late brother, Lindsey Graham.

US Central Command said US forces had compelled 68 commercial vessels to alter course and comply with the blockade by Friday. No peace agreement has been reached nearly six months after the conflict began. The administration is restricting access to the strait, a key route for Iranian oil exports. Iran rejected Trump’s claim, with Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi calling it a “misconception.”

The International Maritime Organization has documented 68 maritime incidents in the Strait of Hormuz following Iran’s blockade, with 19 sailors reported dead as of Friday. Iran began the blockade in late February, after which a series of incidents occurred in the strategically important waterway.

The IMO said the number of fatalities has risen in the incidents it has monitored since the blockade began. Its most recent listed incident occurred on August 17, when a projectile struck the engine room of the Liberia-flagged vessel Minoan Dignity, killing one sailor.

Maritime monitoring firm Windward identified the dead crew member as the ship’s chief engineer. The Strait of Hormuz is a major shipping route through which a significant amount of fuel for international trade is transported, and maritime security disruptions there have generated international concern.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said newly imposed US economic sanctions on Iran amount not only to an illegal economic war against one country but also to a “declaration of war” against all governments. His remarks, reported by Al Jazeera citing Iran’s Fars News Agency, were published on August 22, 2026, after the United States announced fresh economic sanctions against Tehran.

Baghaei said Washington was seeking to establish its jurisdiction over all independent United Nations member states through the sanctions announcement. He described this as an attempt to impose extraterritorial sovereignty. He argued that no government has the right to force foreign banks, institutions or airports operating under another country’s sovereign jurisdiction to avoid lawful trade with a third country.

The spokesperson said such secondary sanctions have no basis in international law and violate the principle of sovereign equality recognized in Article 2, Paragraph 1 of the UN Charter. He called economic coercion an international crime and wrongful act, warning that adding a naval blockade would make other states’ sovereignty dependent on another power’s wishes. Tehran has long described US sanctions as unilateral and contrary to international law.

Iran’s armed forces have never started a war but are prepared to respond to any military aggression against the country’s independence and security, acting Defense Minister Sayyid Majid ibn al-Reza said. The remarks were reported by state broadcaster IRIB and published on August 21, 2026. He said Iran would not tolerate military aggression against its territory, independence or security.

Ibn al-Reza said Iran entered what it calls the “Ramadan war” much stronger than it had been at the start of the previous 12-day war. He described the recent conflict as a difficult test for Iran, saying it caused extensive casualties and damage while also demonstrating the country’s national confidence to the world.

The minister said the conflict showed that Iranians could confront all threats if they rely on themselves, trust young people, prioritize science and technology, and remain united. He also claimed Iran had improved its ability to penetrate enemy bases, monitor regional movements and inflict broader damage in a future conflict. Iran’s defense power, he said, is intended to deter war and aggression rather than pursue warmaking.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has called on Iran to prepare to confront and overcome what he described as cruel sanctions, following a United States announcement of its toughest sanctions against Iran. Speaking during a visit to Iraq on August 21, 2026, Ghalibaf said Iran needed a plan to deal with the current situation.

According to remarks published on Ghalibaf’s Telegram channel, he said Muslim countries’ resources and raw materials were being targeted by their enemies. He said Iran must plan for harsh sanctions in order to overcome them. Ghalibaf also urged greater cooperation between Tehran and Baghdad.

Earlier, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced that Washington would impose its most severe sanctions yet on Iran. Recent reports said the United States was planning to increase economic pressure on Iran. Against the backdrop of the ongoing war, Ghalibaf renewed his call for stronger cooperation between Iran and Iraq during his visit.

Iran is facing mounting economic pressure from US sanctions and a naval blockade, according to a report published on August 21, 2026. Rising food prices and difficulties obtaining foreign currency have increased public concern, while Tehran is pursuing a new strategy to resist Washington’s pressure.

Ali Akbar Dareini, a researcher at Tehran’s Center for Strategic Studies, said the measures may hurt Iran but are unlikely to force its surrender. In an interview with Al Jazeera, he said Washington’s strategy is based on increasing economic damage until Tehran makes concessions. Iran, he said, is responding through a combination of military and civilian measures.

Dareini cited pressure around the Strait of Hormuz and support for allied groups across the Middle East as elements of Iran’s response. He described Iran’s approach as asymmetric warfare, arguing that Tehran cannot directly confront the United States in conventional military strength. He said the conflict has already expanded beyond Iran and the Persian Gulf to the Levant and Red Sea, and warned that its geographic scope could widen further.

US President Donald Trump has threatened what he called the “toughest economic campaign” against Iran, warning that financial institutions, businesses, airports and government bodies that assist Tehran could face severe economic consequences. The report, published on August 21, 2026, says Iran’s foreign minister dismissed the threat as an attempt to divert attention from problems within the United States.

Legal experts say Washington cannot impose a complete trade embargo on other countries without approval from the UN Security Council. International and trade law specialist Shantanu Singh said no country has the authority to impose comprehensive commercial sanctions on Iran or another country without such approval. Georgetown University in Qatar associate professor Paul Musgrave said imposing economic consequences on countries trading with Iran would be very difficult for Trump.

Analysts say previous sanctions have not fully stopped Iranian trade. China bought more than 80 percent of Iran’s seaborne oil exports last year, while Turkey, Pakistan and Iraq continue trading with Iran. The UAE has announced an indefinite trade embargo, alleging missile attacks from Iranian territory, a step analysts consider significant given Iran’s reliance on UAE commercial and financial access.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the United States is preparing what he described as the toughest sanctions in history against Iran, arguing that maximum economic pressure could reduce the need for another large-scale military operation. In an interview with CNBC, he said details of the new sanctions package would be presented at a Monday news conference.

Bessent said he was unsure why oil was receiving so much discussion and maintained that applying maximum economic pressure could avoid the need to restart broader military action. He said Iran is already under a blockade and referred to a US naval blockade imposed in April, which was suspended for one month in mid-June.

The Treasury chief said the measures would work in Iran and declared that the United States would bring about the fall of the current government. He said allies and the rest of the world now needed to decide their position. Asked whether China could also be targeted because of business ties with Iran, Bessent said many such discussions were better kept private.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Iran will not allow Western powers led by the United States to determine its future. In remarks reported on August 21, 2026, he said Tehran and Baghdad share a common determination to prevent foreign powers from deciding their destinies, a position he said has strengthened ties between Iran and Iraq.

Ghalibaf called on Iraq to turn the two countries’ longstanding political and security cooperation into tangible economic development and shared prosperity. He said the presence of large numbers of people reflected the depth of the brotherly relationship between the peoples of Iran and Iraq.

He described Iran-Iraq relations as rooted in geography, history and shared religious beliefs. Ghalibaf said the two nations would be remembered as countries that refused to become footnotes to another party’s narrative and whose futures were not written in Western capitals.

US President Donald Trump has intensified efforts to economically isolate Iran, threatening financial penalties against any country that provides Tehran with an economic “lifeline.” In a Truth Social post on Tuesday, Trump described the campaign as the harshest economic action against any country and said assistance through oil smuggling, money transfers, cash deliveries, currency exchanges, ship registration or front companies must stop. The move came six months after a costly US conflict with Iran began.

Analysts said China and Russia could limit the campaign’s effectiveness. Paul Musgrave of Georgetown University Qatar said enforcing such coordinated sanctions unilaterally would be very difficult and traditionally requires multilateral support. The United Arab Emirates announced an indefinite trade embargo on Iran after accusing Iranian forces of firing two ballistic missiles at its territory. An expert said Washington likely strongly encouraged or influenced the UAE decision.

China bought 80 percent of Iran’s exported oil in 2025, according to Kpler data. Russia and Iran signed a 20-year partnership agreement in January 2025, while their trade reached $4.8 billion in the first 11 months of that year. Iran is also considering joining the BRICS New Development Bank.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi said the United States was “begging” its allies for help after defeat, responding to President Donald Trump’s declaration of what Iran described as unprecedented economic warfare. In a Thursday post on X, Gharibabadi challenged US claims that Iran was near defeat and said Washington was seeking support from all its allies.

Trump warned that countries assisting Iran or conducting trade with it would face “severe economic consequences,” according to the report. Gharibabadi said military war had produced no result and that the United States had now named its next failure “economic war.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Trump’s newly announced economic war would bring another defeat for Washington and deepen anti-US sentiment among Iranians. In a Thursday post on X, Araghchi called the so-called “Economic D-Day” a tactic to divert attention from US domestic problems, citing unprecedented debt and rapidly rising interest costs.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Thursday that US President Donald Trump’s newly announced economic campaign against Iran would bring another defeat for Washington. In a post on X, Araghchi said the initiative, described as an “economic D-Day,” would deepen anti-US sentiment among Iranians. His remarks followed Trump’s Wednesday announcement on Truth Social of what he called a major economic offensive against Iran.

Araghchi characterized the campaign as a tactic to divert attention from the United States’ own crisis, citing unprecedented debt levels and rapidly rising interest costs. He said persisting with failed policies would produce further setbacks for the United States. The Iranian foreign minister also alleged that what he termed US “economic terrorism” threatened the global economy and the sovereignty of countries worldwide.

Trump said Iran had failed to seize an opportunity for an agreement and would face economic warfare and isolation at unprecedented levels. He said Washington would seek to close financial and trade channels supporting Tehran, while warning of severe economic measures against financial institutions, businesses, airports and government bodies that help sustain Iran economically. Trump also urged US allies to join Washington in economically isolating Iran.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps spokesman Brigadier General Sardar Mohebbi said Iran has continued producing weapons and would use more destructive arms if another phase of conflict begins. He made the remarks in an interview with Iranian state broadcaster IRIB, according to the report published on August 20, 2026.

Mohebbi said the destructive power of warheads used in IRGC missiles is now much greater than before. He said that if war resumes, Iran’s weaponry would be completely different from that used in the past in every respect.

The IRGC spokesman said the changes include greater accuracy, missile range and next-generation warheads. The report did not identify a specific potential conflict, provide details on the weapons being produced, or state a timeline for their deployment.