Bessent’s ‘D-Day’ sanctions against Iran would deepen tensions with China

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s threat to unleash an “economic D-Day” against Iran risks setting the U.S. on a collision course with China, its main trading partner. But that’s only if Bessent actually follows through on a threat the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has made before.

And many are skeptical about whether he will, especially when it comes to China — which buys around 90% of Iran’s oil — as Washington tries to maintain a fragile trade truce with Beijing and avoid a global economic shock. On Monday, Bessent promised an “economic onslaught against Iran’s financial connections around the globe” as Trump tries to wind down his unpopular war in the Middle East.