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The United States is working with Türkiye and Pakistan to close Iran's overland trade routes as part of what U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called an "absolute isolation campaign" against Tehran, adding that Washington may seize about $1 billion in Iranian cryptocurrency.
"UAE has been a good partner. Oman has been a good partner. We're working with Pakistan and Türkiye to cut off all the land routes," Bessent said in an interview with Greta Van Susteren at Newsmax's NPolicy Summit in Washington.
Türkiye and Pakistan, both neighbors of Iran, are key land corridors for Iranian trade, and their cooperation would extend the U.S. naval blockade of Iran's ports onto land.
Neither Ankara nor Islamabad has commented on Bessent’s remarks.
"We did have a maximum pressure campaign. Now we have an absolute isolation campaign, and it’s working," Bessent said.
"We have, we had military. Now we have the blockades, so nothing is going in, coming out or going in," he said, predicting that "for the first time ever since they started pumping oil, the history of Iran, they will have no oil on the water for sale."
Citing a New York Times (NYT) report, Bessent said Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) "is now panicking amongst themselves. And that’s the key, because what we have done has never been seen before."
Bessent said Washington has "quarantined them, uh, with airline flights," saying Guard members could no longer visit "their plastic surgeon in London, their girlfriend in Paris, and their money in Geneva."
"If they love the Islamic Republic of Iran, they are stuck there so they can enjoy it," he said.
"We’re probably gonna seize a billion dollars of crypto this week," Bessent said, adding, "And, you know, we know where it is and we are isolating them. We have isolated them economically."
In Tehran, shopkeepers who spoke to the Agence France-Presse (AFP) say the war and blockade are crushing demand. Inflation reached nearly 90% year on year in September, according to official figures, and food prices have more than doubled since last year.
"It is a desperate, last-ditch struggle. Manufacturers are going bankrupt, laying off staff and closing shops, and the impact inevitably reaches us," said Ali Nowruzi, 36, who runs a sportswear shop at the Tajrish bazaar. "We just need some stability."
"There used to be customers who bought two to five kilograms. Now, they’re down to buying one kilogram or half a kilogram," said Nasir, 61, a fruit and nut seller. "They need to stabilize the dollar exchange rate."
"I actually feel embarrassed telling prices to customers. People just come in, ask the price, and leave," said car mechanic Mojtaba Rezaei, 57.
The rial traded at about 2.7 million to the dollar on the unofficial market last week, compared with 1.7 million before the war, and Iran’s GDP contracted 10.1% year on year between late March and late June, official figures show.
Iran's economy minister has rejected predictions of economic collapse, accusing Iran's foes of fueling public anxiety as Washington moves to close Iran's land routes.
The U.S. and Israel launched a war against Iran on Feb. 28 that has killed more than 3,000 people, according to Tehran.
Iran retaliated with attacks that killed Americans and Israelis before a ceasefire was reached in April.
The U.S. subsequently carried out additional strikes on Iranian sites amid stalled negotiations between Washington and Tehran, despite the signing of a framework agreement in June.
Talks have remained deadlocked over disagreements about navigation through the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
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