Bessent Warns Iran's Backers: US Treasury Keeps Sanctioning, 'Land, Sea, or Air'

Washington isn't blinking. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday that the Trump administration will keep going after the people and entities keeping the Iranian regime afloat. Bessent made the message plain in a post on X, tying the campaign to a program he called Operation Economic Outcast. "You are either with us or against us," he wrote, adding that the US knows where the targets are and will sanction anyone still supporting Tehran "whether by land, sea, or air." The warning came hours after Treasury dropped fresh sanctions on Suniel Kumar Sharma, who is based in India, and his spouse Jaspreet Preeti Shahid. Officials accuse the pair of aiding Iran's shadow fleet through what the department described as a web of maritime fraud. According to the Treasury, the scheme involved handing out false flags and certifications to vessels already under sanctions so they could keep hauling Iranian petroleum. That kind of paperwork laundering is a familiar workaround for tankers trying to dodge US restrictions. The designations are the latest round in a broader push to strangle the oil revenue streams that fund Tehran. By going after facilitators rather than just the ships themselves, Treasury is widening the net to the brokers, fixers and family networks that keep the operation running. Bessent's public warning suggests more names are coming. For now, the message to anyone greasing Iran's maritime trade is blunt: the US says it has your number.

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