Trump says US will begin punishing new economic sanctions against Iran

President Donald Trump announced severe new economic sanctions against Iran on Wednesday, but did not go into immediate detail.

In an evening post on social media, President Trump said the measures would be an “ECONOMIC D-DAY” and called on allied nations to join in the sanctions effort.

“Today, I am also announcing that ANY country that allows its financial institutions, businesses, airports, or government entities to provide any type of lifeline to Iran will itself face TREMENDOUS Economic Consequences. Oil smuggling, swap lines, cash transfers, exchange houses, ship registries, front companies — It all needs to stop NOW. You know who you are.”

The president did not give specifics about the nature of expected U.S. sanctions.

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But earlier on Wednesday, the president suggested the economic pressure on Iran could increase.

“Well, we have things that we could sanction. We have very draconian sanctions, and we’ll see what happens. Right now, the strait is open. A lot of boats are coming through. People aren’t reporting that, and that may slow down a little bit at some point. But right now, a lot of boats are coming though. The naval blockade has been extremely effective,” Trump said.

Separately, the UAE announced it would stop trade and financial transactions with Iran, after accusing Iran of launching ballistic missiles at the Gulf nation this week.

And last week, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested in an interview with Newsmax there could be significant new economic measures against Iran to come, while Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth suggested the U.S. could continue the naval blockade as long as needed.

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This is a developing story and will be updated.