The United States will shut down Iranian airlines' access to landing spots, refueling, and ticket sales, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced on Thursday, in a significant escalation of Washington's 'Economic Fury' campaign against Tehran as peace negotiations remain deadlocked.
In a sweeping post on X, Bessent laid out a cascade of punitive measures targeting Iran's aviation sector, oil exports, and maritime toll collection — signalling that Washington intends to tighten the financial vice regardless of the ongoing diplomatic back-channel.
"The US Treasury continues our Economic Fury campaign against the Iranian regime," Bessent said, painting a stark picture of an economy already buckling under sustained pressure.
"Their troops are not getting paid, the police are not reporting for work, and Kharg Island is shut down. The Iranian economy and currency are in free fall."
The @USTreasury continues our Economic Fury campaign against the Iranian regime.
— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) May 28, 2026
Their troops are not getting paid, the police are not reporting for work, and Kharg Island is shut down. The Iranian economy and currency are in free fall.
Iran's Persian Gulf Strait Authority…
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Kharg Island, which handles the bulk of Iran's crude oil exports, being offline represents a devastating blow to Tehran's primary revenue artery. Bessent added that a US Naval blockade had driven Iranian crude shipments to record lows, describing the maritime stranglehold as a "Wall of Steel."
On the maritime toll front, Bessent announced that the Treasury had sanctioned Iran's Persian Gulf Strait Authority, "Iran's PGSA is a joke, and today Treasury has sanctioned it. We have warned any corporate or state entities against paying tolls or hiding them as aid payments."
The aviation shutdown, however, represents perhaps the most visible escalation, one that would effectively cut Iranian carriers off from the global aviation network, dealing a direct blow to civilian connectivity and deepening Iran's international isolation.
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Bessent closed with a blunt ultimatum: "Only a satisfactory outcome in negotiations will end the downward spiral."
The announcement comes on a day when military tensions also flared, with Iran striking a US airbase near the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for earlier American strikes near Bandar Abbas, a reminder that the economic and military pressure tracks are now moving in lockstep.
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