Iran condemns new US sanctions threats as ‘economic terrorism’ and ‘state blackmail’
Iran has strongly denounced latest threats by the US Treasury Department to intensify sanctions, branding Washington’s latest hostile move as “economic terrorism” and blatant “state blackmail.”
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei slammed the US measures in a post on his X account on Thursday, describing them as deliberate attempts to inflict suffering on innocent civilians.
“It is utterly abominable how policies that deliberately inflict pain and suffering on innocent people are presented with smug self-righteousness,” Baqaei wrote.
“This only reveals an inhumane mindset behind them. These are nothing short of economic terrorism and state-sponsored extortion — actions that amount to crimes against humanity and, in their cumulative effect, constitute genocide,” he added.
It is utterly abominable how policies that deliberately inflict pain and suffering on innocent people are presented with smug self-righteousness.
— Esmaeil Baqaei (@IRIMFA_SPOX) April 16, 2026
This only reveals an inhumane mindset behind them.
These are nothing short of economic terrorism and state-sponsored extortion —… pic.twitter.com/nmYqJ1HLhD
Baqaei’s sharp rebuke came after the US Treasury imposed new sanctions on several Iranian-linked companies and oil tankers.
US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Besant brazenly warned that any country purchasing Iranian oil or holding Tehran’s financial assets in its banks would face punitive sanctions.
These repeated US attempts at economic coercion as part of a long-standing campaign of illegal unilateral sanctions aimed at undermining Iran’s legitimate rights and pressuring its people.
Iran has consistently maintained that such measures violate international law and represent a form of collective punishment against an entire nation for exercising its sovereign right to develop its economy and trade freely.
Washington’s so-called “maximum pressure” policy has not only failed to break the Iranian nation’s resolve but has further exposed the aggressive and hypocritical nature of US foreign policy.
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