Iran's Foreign Ministry has denounced Washington's latest round of sanctions as an act of "economic warfare" that oversteps into an illegitimate claim of authority over every UN member state.
The remarks escalated rhetoric a day after US President Donald Trump threatened Tehran with what he called an "economic D-Day."
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei, in a post on X, said, "The United States' declaration of new economic sanctions on Iran is far more than continued unlawful 'economic warfare' against a single country. It is an assertion of extraterritorial sovereignty over every independent Member State of the United Nations."
The United States' declaration of new economic sanctions on Iran is far more than continued unlawful “economic warfare” against a single country. It is an assertion of extraterritorial sovereignty over every independent Member State of the United Nations.
— Esmaeil Baqaei (@IRIMFA_SPOX) August 22, 2026
No State may lawfully…
He added, "No State may lawfully compel foreign banks, enterprises, or airports - each subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of its own sovereign - to renounce lawful commerce with a third State."
Baqaei argued that such secondary sanctions have no grounding in international law.
"Such secondary sanctions find no foundation in international law. They violate the principle of sovereign equality enshrined in Article 2(1) of the UN Charter and breach the customary prohibition on intervention affirmed by the International Court of Justice in the Nicaragua case," he wrote, adding that "economic coercion designed to force a sovereign State to alter its lawful policy choices constitutes an outright internationally wrongful act."
He went on to link the sanctions to the US naval blockade in the region, "When combined with a naval blockade amounting to military aggression, these demands reduce the sovereignty of all other States to something provisional, conditional, and revocable at the whim of another power. Compliance purchases no immunity or respect; it merely concedes that one's banks, enterprises, and airports operate only under a foreign licence."
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Baqaei warned that the situation could ultimately undermine state sovereignty and push the international system back towards “full-scale classic colonialism.”
His remarks came after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that Washington was preparing the “toughest sanctions in history” against Iran.
Iranian military officials have also warned of a strong response to any new threats. Armed Forces chief of staff Ali Abdollahi said Iran would respond with “revolutionary, crushing, regret-inducing and devastating responses”, according to Iranian state media.
The latest exchange comes as the wider standoff continues, with a US naval blockade restricting Iranian oil exports and crude loadings reportedly falling to around one-seventh of their pre-war levels.
ALSO READ: Iran Warns Of 'Crushing' Response As US Threatens Toughest-Ever Sanctions
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