WASHINGTON, United States, Aug 20, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - US President Donald Trump said Wednesday he was launching a major new campaign to target Iran's economy, threatening "tremendous" punishment on any country that helps or does business with the Islamic republic.
The intensified economic pressure campaign comes as the war nears its sixth month with no immediate diplomatic or military off-ramp in sight and the vital Strait of Hormuz still significantly choked-off.
With November elections quickly approaching, Trump is also facing renewed domestic scrutiny over the war's costs on US consumers and toll on the military.
"Today, I am announcing the MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY! This will be Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
"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," he said.
He did not specify what punishment countries would face, and none other than Iran were mentioned by name.
He listed several activities that he said need to stop immediately: "oil smuggling, swap lines, cash transfers, exchange houses, ship registries, front companies."
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had similarly said last week that the US would soon be ramping up efforts at economically isolating Iran, as part of a two-pronged approach with a US naval blockade.
"It will be a combination of economic isolation, like the world has never seen before," Bessent told conservative television network Newsmax.
The US Treasury has for months been carrying out an effort, dubbed Operation Economic Fury, aiming to cut off Iran's funding with targeted sanctions.
    Iranian defiance -
Iran has struck a defiant tone, having survived months of US military operations that failed to bring a decisive end to the war and has -- according to US media reports -- severely drawn down US munition stockpiles. The Pentagon has denied these reports.
The conflict broke out on February 28 with US-Israeli attacks on the Islamic republic, which retaliated with missile and drone strikes across the region.
Tehran's missile and drone threat has severely curtailed shipping traffic through the Strait, as a framework US-Iran deal to reopen it collapsed.
However, Trump earlier on Wednesday touted US military efforts to aid ships out of the strait, saying "right now, a lot of boats are coming through."
Digital media outlet Axios reported that US forces were facilitating the transit of 15 to 20 ships in and out of the Hormuz each night in recent weeks -- carrying "roughly half the pre-war volume" of daily oil shipments.
In recent days, both sides have said messages were being exchanged, however Trump on Tuesday insisted talks were off and posted a message on social media suggesting the strait could be a "NEW U.S. Territory."
On Tuesday, the UAE announced that it was suspending all economic dealings with Iran after saying it had been targeted by two ballistic missiles.
The neighbours across the Gulf share deep cultural and historical ties, and the UAE -- home to a sizable Iranian community -- had been a major trading partner for US-sanctioned Iran, at least before the war.
"We need all of our Allies to stand with the United States of America to isolate, and defeat, the Iran threat," Trump said Wednesday on Truth Social.