Vance: US Enters New Phase Against Iran With Financial Pressure

Iran insists President Donald Trump's so-called "economic D-Day" will not work, claiming shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains steady. Abbas Araghchi, the Iranian Foreign Minister, dismissed the campaign as a distraction while America struggles with its own growing national debt. Earlier this week, President Trump stated that the economic push he intends to launch against Iran would be the most crushing operation ever attempted.

Vice President JD Vance confirmed on Thursday that the conflict has entered a new phase. He described the situation on the ground as a "new reality" now that Washington is relying heavily on financial pressure rather than just military force. Speaking on "The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show," Vance told listeners, "We're in a new phase of this." He noted that their conventional military has been destroyed and that an incredible amount of pressure has already been placed on the industrial base used to build weapons.

"We have destroyed their conventional military," Vance said. "We have put an incredible amount of pressure on their industrial base that they use to manufacture weapons." He explained that the most effective tool left is economic pressure, though he warned it involves a delicate dance. If the U.S. squeezes Iran financially, Tehran will likely try to squeeze back.

"We're kind of now in a new phase where the most effective tool that we have is the economic pressure that we can apply to them," Vance added. "And this is a delicate dance because we apply economic pressure to them, they're going to try to apply economic pressure to us." The administration plans to keep this strategy alive because it offers the best path to their final objective.

"The president said Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon," Vance stated during the interview. "Well, their nuclear facilities are destroyed, but the question is, do they try to rebuild them?" The goal is to create a changed reality where not only can Americans say with confidence that facilities are ruined, but also that Tehran will never attempt to reconstruct them. That specific phase is what the country is in right now.

These remarks arrived as President Trump ramped up his economic campaign against Tehran. He warned other nations that they would face severe consequences if they provide "any type of lifeline to Iran." Washington seeks to further isolate the regime by cutting off these connections.

Former Defense Secretary Mark Esper joined the chorus calling for a tougher squeeze on Iran. On Thursday, he urged the United States and its allies to intensify economic pressure and target countries helping Iran stay afloat. He singled out China as one of the largest buyers of Iranian oil. Speaking on "America Reports," Esper argued that tightening the financial noose is the best option available.

"It is something that will take us time and patience and discipline to effect," Esper said. He added there was a good chance the strategy could pay off, provided everyone remains patient. He noted that while some sacrifice would be needed from both the U.S. and the Iranian people, it is far better than committing ground troops or retreating from the Strait of Hormuz.

"The president putting out the word to other nations is important," Esper said, referring to President Trump's recent post on Truth Social. "This will be economic warfare and isolation on an unprecedented scale." Trump wrote that any country allowing its banks, businesses, airports, or government entities to provide aid to Iran will face tremendous economic consequences.

"As you know, China is one of the biggest buyers of Iranian oil and other goods," Esper said. But he noted that besides China, the focus must also turn to countries bordering Iran to truly clamp down on Tehran and tie up their economy.

Meanwhile, Tehran is pushing for a new regional order as Iraq's oil revenues plunge due to the closure of the strait. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, visited Iraq in August to discuss these shifting dynamics. The situation remains tense as diplomatic efforts clash with economic warfare tactics from both sides.

A visit by Iranian Vice President Eshaq Ghalibaf to Baghdad marks a clear effort by Tehran to reset relations with Iraq. Analysts say this move happens as regional and economic pressure mounts on the Iraqi state. Ghalibaf stayed for three days while Baghdad grapples with an unfolding financial crisis. That crisis stems from the long-term closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Dr. Yaron Schneider, a researcher at the INSS, spoke to The Jerusalem Post about these shifting dynamics. He noted that Iran is trying to mend ties before they slip further away. His words were direct: "they don't lose Iraq." This urgency makes sense when you look at the numbers. Monthly oil revenues for Iraq have plummeted from roughly 7 billion or 8 billion dollars down to just 1.2 billion to 1.9 billion. Schneider called it a dangerous situation.

"This is a crisis that is still ongoing and might undermine the state if it continues," he stated plainly. "They don't have any short-term solution for this crisis." Iran wants to quiet critics who point out these devastating effects. Ghalibaf used his time in Baghdad to push for a new regional order. He also denounced foreign interference, according to reports from The Jerusalem Post.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Treasury Department hit Hezbollah with new sanctions on Thursday. Officials say a cash-smuggling network moved hundreds of millions of dollars across the Middle East. Washington is tightening its grip to cut off foreign currency access for Iran's ally. The Treasury stated the group used couriers flying commercial routes between Lebanon, Turkey, the UAE, and Iran. This allowed Hezbollah to dodge U.S. rules easily.

The sanctions target 10 specific individuals. One person previously linked was Behnam Shahriyari, a finance official with the IRGC-Quds Force who has now passed away. The Treasury said OFAC is re-designating Hizballah for service to the Iranian regime under that command structure. Hezbollah and its allies have relied on oil smuggling and illicit shipping to move funds. They also used commodity sales and bulk cash transfers to generate money across the region.

The USS Abraham Lincoln began its voyage home after a grueling 272-day deployment. U.S. officials told Fox News the carrier is leaving the Arabian Sea for San Diego. The trip back covers roughly 13,000 miles and could take more than a month. As the Lincoln heads out, the USS George Washington arrived in the Middle East to fill its spot. That carrier came from the eastern Pacific.

The USS George H.W. Bush remains stationed in the Arabian Sea as well. This shift occurs while the blockade on Iranian ports enters its 38th day. About 20 U.S. ships stay in the region, matching the naval presence since Operation Epic Fury started in February. The force includes a Marine Expeditionary Unit and several Navy destroyers. War Secretary Pete Hegseth spoke with the Lincoln's crew last week before they departed.

Brad Cooper visited the carrier over the weekend. He looked ready for what lies ahead. History will record this deployment as one of the most operationally intense and consequential of the modern era, according to his statement. Fox News' Liz Friden contributed to this report.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a stark warning to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan early Thursday. The message was clear: do not drag Turkey into dangerous adventures in Syria. He accused the Turkish leader of testing Israel's resolve. It would be better for Erdoğan to continue his detached-from-reality, fanciful rhetoric against Israel in the Turkish Grand National Assembly than to attempt this provocation.

Israel will not allow any actor to threaten its security, Katz wrote on X. The warning comes two days after Israel struck Syria's Abu al-Duhur Airbase. This action has put Washington in a difficult position now. Officials must try to contain tensions between Turkey and Israel. Both are key NATO members and partners of the United States in the Middle East region.

Israel said Syria was on the verge of breaching a security understanding by allowing Turkish troops to deploy there. Ankara rejected this account immediately. Syria said there were no plans for a permanent Turkish base or troop deployment. However, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani acknowledged that Turkish military officers had visited the facility for training and exchanges of expertise.

Turkey's Defense Ministry said no Turkish military delegation was present at the base before or during the strike, Reuters reported. On Wednesday, Turkey called these allegations from Israel untenable. They argued the claims are intended to legitimize Israel's unlawful airstrikes targeting Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The imputations voiced stem from Netanyahu's intent to pursue expansionist and destabilizing policies in the region ahead of the elections in Israel, according to Turkey's government social media post.

Yemeni Armed Forces say 81 operations over a 24-hour period killed multiple Houthi leaders. The Yemeni military announced this Thursday after carrying out high-quality strikes against the Iran-backed group. These actions led to the destruction of equipment and vehicles, the statement said.

The operations are a response to repeated Houthi attacks on civilian facilities and the siege on the Yemeni people. Targets included the Duba port, oil exports, Sana'a Airport, and Yemeni aircraft. They also destroyed the ports of Hodeidah, Salif, and Ras Issa. The military blamed the Houthis for targeting food ships and displacement camps to starve Yemenis.

The Armed Forces are committed to defending Yemen's sovereignty and the dignity of its citizens. They reject any external agendas while affirming their resolve to restore state institutions. Their goal is to end the suffering of the people, the statement concluded. This is an excerpt from a report by Fox News Digital's Efrat Lachter.

U.S. Central Command posted an image of multiple Osprey aircraft launching from the USS Boxer in the Arabian Sea on Thursday. The Boxer is an amphibious assault ship that has been in the region since at least early July. It operates as part of the deployment to the U.S. Navy's 5th fleet region, according to U.S. Naval Institute News.

The Boxer counts itself among the many ships enforcing the blockade of Iran's ports. As of Aug. 20, U.S. forces maintain this pressure point in the waterways.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" Thursday that the Trump administration's fresh economic squeeze on Iran might stop big fights from starting again, at least right now. He explained that if maximum pressure holds, large-scale kinetic action is unlikely for the moment. "If we are doing this maximum economic pressure, then that means that likely there will not be a large-scale kinetic restart," Bessent said. "But I would emphasize that is for now."

This new move follows President Donald Trump's Wednesday announcement of what he called an "economic D-Day." The plan forces allies into a binary choice: stand with the United States or face isolation. "The economic pressure means that we are going to all of our allies, and this is going to be the greatest coordinated economic isolation in the history of the world," Bessent stated. He added that any nation continuing trade, moving money, buying oil, or facilitating ship transfers will face the full weight of U.S. Treasury enforcement. "We are going to them and saying you are either with us or against us."

The strategy aims to cut off funding for regime proxies, pay soldiers, and halt inflation through a one-two punch of blockade and sanctions. Bessent compared this approach to past successes in Venezuela and Cuba. "It is a one-two punch. We have the blockade, and we are going to have the toughest sanctions in history," he said. "And I will tell you, this will work... It worked in Venezuela once we put up the blockade. It is working in Cuba right now, and it is going to work in Iran, and we are going to collapse this regime."

On the ground, CENTCOM forces have already redirected 67 commercial vessels, disabled three ships, and boarded two others while enforcing the blockade. The military movement continues with the arrival of the USS George Washington strike group in the Arabian Sea on Wednesday. This carrier is heading east to relieve the USS Abraham Lincoln, which has spent six months deployed to the region.

The shift moves one of the Navy's 11 aircraft carriers from the Indo-Pacific to U.S. Central Command's theater. It highlights a tight schedule for the fleet, temporarily leaving the western Pacific without an American carrier while maintenance crews work on long-deployed ships like the Abraham Lincoln. The USS Carl Vinson left San Diego this week and might fill that gap, though officials have not said where it is going due to operational security needs.

This situation mirrors a similar gap in U.S. carrier availability seen under the Biden administration in 2024. Only about half of the carriers are ready for action at any given time because they must undergo lengthy maintenance after missions. These cycles can stretch months or over a year. For instance, the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower entered Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Virginia in January 2025 following a nine-month deployment and did not return to sea for fifteen months. The strain on the fleet remains clear as these logistical challenges play out.

Houthis claim they struck Saudi targets with drones. Iran-backed fighters in Yemen announced an assault on Najran airport and an Aramco site nearby. Spokesperson Yahya Saree posted this news on Telegram last week. He wrote that the Yemeni Armed Forces executed two drone missions against a sensitive enemy location at Najran Airport. The group also hit facilities operated by Saudi Aramco in the same region, sources say. Saree stated both strikes achieved their objectives without issue. He blamed the action on Saudi drones violating airspace over Saada Governorate previously. "The Armed Forces will continue to protect Yemen's sovereignty from any incursion and maintain this balance," he added in his statement. No immediate confirmation arrived from Riyadh regarding these specific attacks.

Tajikistan now seeks massive oil shipments from its neighbor Iran. The nation wants over 2.5 million tons of fuel due to shortages elsewhere. Its transport ministry released a statement Tuesday outlining the precise quantities needed. The request includes 2 million tons of crude oil plus gasoline, diesel, and aviation kerosene. Officials calculated this volume equals roughly 51,000 rail tank cars waiting at stations. Russia has historically supplied eighty percent of Tajikistan's petroleum products for decades. Supply chain disruptions persist four years after the invasion of Ukraine began in Europe. The energy minister noted talks are ongoing with Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Iraq, and Belarus too. Reuters reported that linguistic ties help bridge gaps between Tehran and Dushanbe. A transport minister met an Iranian official in Tehran on August fifteenth to discuss logistics. No specific timeframe was given for when the fuel might actually ship out of Iran.

Iranian leaders mock President Trump's threat to wage economic warfare. Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi called the strategy a guaranteed failure on X last night. "The military war didn't yield results, so now they've named the next failure 'economic war,'" he said in his post. He argued that Washington claims Tehran is collapsing while begging allies for help instead. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi dismissed the plan as a distraction from America's own debt crisis. The U.S. national debt recently surpassed forty trillion dollars according to recent reports. Araghchi warned that doubling down on failed policies will only bring further defeat and anger among Iranians. He added that US economic terrorism threatens global economy and sovereignty worldwide in his warning. The Trump administration has not publicly responded to these remarks as of Thursday morning. Trump argues Iran is already militarily weakened and needs an economic campaign to cripple them completely.

Central Command dropped a photo on Thursday showing sailors at work on the flight deck of the USS George Washington. This aircraft carrier is positioned to swap places with the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Middle East. The USS Abraham Lincoln has spent six months deployed there to support operations related to the Iran war, yet its time at sea stretches much further back. It has been underway for more than 250 consecutive days since leaving Naval Base San Diego on Nov. 21, 2025.

The George Washington Carrier Strike Group made it into the CENTCOM theater Wednesday. That area covers twenty-one nations across the Middle East plus parts of Central and South Asia. Just last week, CENTCOM pushed back hard against media stories claiming sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln tried to take their own lives. War Secretary Pete Hegseth joined that denial, stating allegations about poor living conditions on the ship were completely misrepresented. Reports had surfaced regarding supply shortages, plumbing problems, and crew members threatening to jump off the vessel.

Six armed individuals hijacked a tanker near the Yemen coast with plans to send it toward Somalia, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center. The ship was heading west through the Gulf of Aden on Thursday when an unauthorized vessel approached them. Authorities are now looking into the incident.

President Donald Trump announced Wednesday what he labeled the most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country. He threatened sweeping consequences for nations and businesses offering Iran an economic lifeline as he tries to isolate Tehran further. No one has given the Islamic Republic of Iran a greater opportunity to make a Deal than me, Trump wrote in a post on X. Tragically, they failed to take it. Therefore, 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, he said, claiming Iran's navy is gone, its air force destroyed, military factories reduced to rubble, currency worthless, and the country hanging by a thread. Trump warned that any country allowing financial institutions, businesses, airports, or government entities to provide a lifeline to Iran would face tremendous economic consequences. Oil smuggling, swap lines, cash transfers, exchange houses, ship registries, front companies, it all needs to stop now. You know who you are, he added. He called the campaign an Economic D-Day and urged U.S. allies to help isolate and defeat the Iran threat.

Trump said Iran's leaders are on the ropes and these measures would cripple them and their ability to project terror worldwide. IRAN WILL NEVER HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON. Live Coverage begins here, covered by James Cirrone and Emma Bussey.