US sanctions Chinese entities, issues global warning on ‘Economic D-Day’ against Iran

The United States on Monday announced fresh sanctions against 60 entities in multiple countries, including China and Hong Kong, and issued a fresh warning demanding “immediate action” from nations maintaining economic and commercial ties with Iran.

The actions announced on Monday are part of the Trump administration’s latest efforts to choke off Tehran economically after military strikes and diplomatic negotiations failed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the six-month-long conflict.

Dubbed “Economic D-Day” by the Trump administration, the new actions aimed to expand Washington’s secondary sanctions, putting several entities in multiple countries on notice.

“Let me be clear: any entity that facilitates money laundering on behalf of Iran will be removed from the US dollar system. The clock just started ticking,” said US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent at a press conference.

Bessent added that US President Donald Trump is “making phone calls to world leaders with specific requests” to halt their engagement with the Iranian regime, but did not identify the countries he had contacted.

The Treasury Department said that it has “mapped the networks, facilitators, and financial channels that Iran uses to smuggle oil, evade sanctions, and fund terror.”