US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has warned of potential dire penalties for nations with financial ties to Iran.
“Every country has a defined timeline to shut down activities we have identified. If they do not take action, we will do so unilaterally through Treasury authorities,” Bessent stated at a information convention.
Bessent declined to call the particular nations. However, China, India, Turkey, Iraq, and the United Arab Emirates may very well be most in danger for US motion, consultants instructed CNN.
“China, by far, is the most impactful one if you really wanted to make a dent in Iran’s ability to continue to finance their activities,” stated Daniel Tannebaum, a nonresident senior fellow on the Atlantic Council.
According to the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, China is Iran’s largest buying and selling companion and purchaser of Iranian oil.
Iran despatched $22.4 billion in exports to China and imported $15.6 billion from there in 2022, per the World Bank.
However, consultants are skeptical that the administration will act strongly in opposition to China, particularly forward of Xi Jinping’s anticipated go to.
“The US government has never gone hard on economic sanctions on China,” stated Tannebaum, who can be a companion at administration consulting agency Oliver Wyman.
The UAE has traditionally been one in every of Iran’s largest business companions. However, it announced last week that it was suspending all commerce and monetary transactions with Iran “until further notice.”
Turkey has been a sturdy key buying and selling companion for Iran, with greater than $5 billion in bilateral commerce in 2024, in accordance with its Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and it imported 13% of its pure gasoline from Iran final 12 months.
Iraq and Iran have traditionally traded billions, with Iraq being dependent on Iranian electrical energy and gasoline.
India’s commerce with Iran has fallen in recent times, standing at round $1.6 billion in 2025-2026, in accordance with India’s Department of Commerce.