Bessent Says Iranian Airlines Will Shut Down Amid Sanctions

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sept. 21 that all of Iran’s airlines will be shut down across the globe on Sept. 23 as the United States targets Iran’s aviation sector.

“If they land, you cannot provide them with fuel, you cannot provide them with landing services, you cannot sell them tickets, or you will be knocked out of the dollar system,” Bessent said in a Sept. 21 interview with CNBC.

The United States will begin imposing secondary sanctions this week on foreign entities that continue to provide services to Iranian airlines, according to Bessent.

Bessent’s announcement comes nearly a month after the United States launched Operation Economic Outcast. Since the start of the operation, the U.S. government has imposed new sanctions against Iran. It has also targeted dozens of entities and individuals that serve as financial lifelines for Tehran in an effort to isolate Iran’s economy.

The Treasury secretary told CNBC on Sept. 21 that the United States is pressuring the Iranian regime “like never before” through Operation Economic Outcast. He also referenced the Treasury’s expanded sanctions targeting any individual or entity operating in Iran’s shipping, aviation, technology, gold, and digital asset sectors.

Bessent said the Trump administration is taking steps to crack down on Iran’s “enablers” across the globe, including three major Egyptian, Turkish, and Russian banks.

“We know who they are; they know who they are. And we are putting a stop to it,” he said.

On Sept. 8, the Treasury Department imposed sanctions on all remaining Iranian airlines that had not previously been sanctioned by the United States. The department also targeted foreign companies that allegedly helped Iran evade sanctions by providing the regime with aircraft and support services for the country’s aviation industry.

The Treasury Department warned that any foreign firms or individuals enabling the sanctioned Iranian airlines, including through the provision of cargo services, aircraft transfers, or sales agent support, would face “serious consequences.”

“Under Operation Economic Outcast, we promised severe consequences for those providing financial lifelines to the Iranian regime,” Bessent stated.

“Let this be a warning to anyone doing business with Iran’s remaining airlines, all of which we sanctioned today: You are at risk of being cut off from the global financial system.”

Bessent’s warning of secondary sanctions has already prompted some foreign countries and companies to announce plans to suspend Iranian flights.

A Turkish Airlines representative on Sept. 21 told Iran International, a Persian-language news outlet based in London, that the company was suspending all flights to Iran until at least March 2027.

The Paris-based AFP News agency reported on Sept. 21 that Iraq is also expected to enforce a ban on Iranian airlines starting on Sept. 22 in response to the Treasury secretary’s warning.

The Epoch Times reached out to Turkish Airlines and the Embassy of the Republic of Iraq in Washington for confirmation but did not receive any response before publication time.

The Trump administration launched Operation Economic Outcast in August after peace talks stalled following the breakdown of a ceasefire and memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran in July.

Last week, President Donald Trump said his administration anticipated a “big decision” to be made soon regarding the continued conflict with Iran.

Trump reiterated his position on Sept. 20, telling Fox News correspondent Trey Yingst that he was in a “deciding mode” and that “very big things” would be happening in the “not-so-distant future.”

Trump told Yingst that his options included “wiping Iran out, letting them rot economically, or making a deal.”

“My question is, ‘If and when do I blow the entire nation up?’ They better behave,” Trump said, according to Yingst.

Mike Waltz, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said Sept. 20 that while Trump is determined to prevent Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, the door was open for the regime to return to the negotiating table if they did so “in good faith.”