Iran Warns Trump: Push Us Harder and the Whole World Pays Tehran threatens an 'earthquake' responseDonald Trump's economic war on Iran was supposed to bring Tehran to its knees. Instead, Iran is warning that Washington could discover just how expensive economic warfare can become. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent unveiled the latest round of sanctions this week, targeting the networks Iran has built to keep trading despite years of American restrictions. But the much-hyped “economic D-Day” was less dramatic than expected. Washington largely tightened enforcement of existing sanctions while warning that far harsher measures could follow. Tehran's response was anything but restrained. Iran's biggest weapon may be oilIran knows exactly where it can hurt the world. Oil. The Strait of Hormuz remains the critical pressure point, with roughly a fifth of global oil supplies historically passing through the waterway. Iran has already disrupted shipping and is now warning that it could go further — potentially targeting alternative routes used by Gulf producers to get their oil around the Strait. Iranian officials have threatened that if the economic war continues, oil exports from the Persian Gulf could be stopped altogether. That would send a very simple message from Tehran to Washington: If Iran cannot sell its oil, nobody's oil is safe. The gasoline problem for TrumpThat threat has an obvious consequence for American consumers. Disrupt enough Middle Eastern oil exports and global prices rise. And when crude rises, motorists eventually feel it at the petrol pump. That makes the Iran conflict not just a foreign-policy problem for Trump but another potential economic headache — precisely as Republicans prepare for the midterm elections. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf producers have managed to reroute millions of barrels around Hormuz, but those alternative routes cannot simply replace the Strait without limits. Iran has also identified dozens of vessels it claims have violated its restrictions and threatened them with penalties including detention or confiscation. Now Europe is being dragged into the warningPerhaps more alarming is Tehran's widening definition of who is participating in the war. Iran has warned that countries assisting US or Israeli military operations could themselves become legitimate targets. Bulgaria has been singled out after US refuelling aircraft reportedly operated from its territory. That matters because Bulgaria is a NATO member. Iran has already demonstrated the ability to strike well beyond its immediate neighbourhood, while the conflict has spread across much of the Middle East. The danger is that retaliation intended to punish Washington could instead create a much wider confrontation. Tehran says it has learned to play the gameIranian officials insist they are not simply reacting. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei described Tehran's strategy as a combination of chess and poker. It is a revealing comparison. Iran wants Washington to believe that every additional economic squeeze carries a price — and that Tehran still has cards of its own. Those cards include oil, shipping lanes, missiles and the ability to threaten America's regional partners. The economic war could become a global oneThat is the gamble facing Trump. Washington believes economic pressure can force Iran back to the negotiating table. Iran believes it can make the pressure so painful that America's allies, energy markets and consumers begin demanding an end to the campaign. Neither side appears ready to blink. And that leaves the world facing the most dangerous question of all: What happens if Trump's economic D-Day doesn't break Iran — but instead persuades Tehran to break the oil market? SOURCE
