U.S. reaches limit of sanctions power in targeting Iran’s economy

The Trump administration launched its “Economic Fury” campaign to hobble Iran’s economy with sanctions more than a month ago. So far, the country is unbowed. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent exhorted allies earlier this week to join the US in its economic pressure campaign, which the administration rolled out shortly after it entered into a ceasefire that halted its military campaign against Iran, dubbed “Epic Fury.” The new campaign appeared to be an update of “Maximum Pressure,” the tag line dating from Trump’s first term that described his approach of suffocating the Iranian economy. The new campaign that started April 16 promised to leverage “the full range of available tools and authorities” to choke off Iran. So far, though, the actions largely resembled the previous strategy, and with the same effect: Iran has broadly held out against US demands despite facing a steadily growing arsenal of sanctions dating back to 2018, when President Donald Trump backed out of a nuclear deal forged during the Obama era. That’s brought the total number of sanctions against Iran imposed in the last eight years to nearly 2,000, according to Jeremy Paner, a partner at Hughes Hubbard & Reed, who tracks designations on Iran’s oil and petrochemical sectors. “There really hasn’t been any significant shift in the targeting priorities,” Paner said. “The authorities are the same. The geographies being targeted are the same.” The US effort has targeted everything from oil companies and shipping firms to currency exchanges and intermediaries across China and the Middle East. But all of those measures — even with an extensive bombing campaign alongside Israel and an ongoing US Navy blockade — have only underscored Iran’s ability to weather US pressure, especially given continued oil sales to China. The administration’s challenge with Iran is one that’s bedeviled successive administrations: squeezing Iran’s economy enough to force change while avoiding excessive harm to the global economy