Tehran vows to retaliate after US widens sanctions

Iran yesterday pledged to fight back against expanded US sanctions aimed at isolating its economy, expressing confidence that major trading partners would resist Washington’s pressure campaign.

Almost six months into a conflict the US has struggled to resolve, US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent on Monday unveiled a package targeting dozens of individuals and entities as part of what he described as “Operation Economic Outcast,” but stopped short of the most punishing sanctions.

While he said countries that continued trading with Iran risked being forced out of the US dollar-based financial system, he declined to give a timeline or identify which might be targeted, saying he would give them time to comply with the new directive.

Photo: West Asia News Agency via Reuters

“Why would I want to blow up the global financial system?” he said, when asked why the measures had not gone further.

While the US Department of the Treasury announced new sanctions on 60 individuals, entities and vessels, the list did not feature any of the Chinese financial institutions suspected of facilitating Iran’s oil trade.

“We want to make clear here today that no one is above the reach of US sanctions,” Bessent said in response to a question about Chinese banks.

China has been the biggest buyer of Iranian oil for several years, although the US blockade of Iran’s ports has cut Iranian oil flows to China since Washington renewed it in the middle of last month.

Experts say Washington is wary of Chinese retaliation for any sanctions on its banks ahead of expected talks next month between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), with any curbs on China’s exports of critical minerals especially sensitive.

In Beijing, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Lin Jian (林劍) told a regular press briefing that China opposes unilateral sanctions and warned they risk worsening conflicts.

The most urgent task is to de-escalate tensions and return to negotiations, he said.

“China’s cooperation with Iran has always been conducted within the international framework and should not be interfered with or undermined,” he said. “China is closely monitoring relevant developments and will take all necessary measures to firmly safeguard its own interests.”

Oil prices fell for a second day as traders brushed off the impact of the sanctions, although market participants remained wary of Iran’s continued ability to disrupt shipping.

Before news of the latest sanctions, Iran threatened both a possible military response and further reduction in oil exports from the Gulf in retaliation for any US economic measures.

After they were unveiled, Iranian Minister of Economic Affairs Ali Madanizadeh said that Tehran was prepared.

“Our defense is no longer so defensive; the enemies should wait for an attack,” he told state television.

Neither China nor Russia had “accepted” the US measures, he added, predicting that other countries would resist them.

Ugandan immigration authorities have returned the passports of four Taiwanese after withholding the travel documents at Entebbe International Airport, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Hsiao Kuang-wei (蕭光偉) said yesterday. After hearing about the incident, the ministry immediately instructed its representative office in Somaliland, which is responsible for affairs involving Uganda, to closely monitor the situation and work with the Uganda Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce to communicate with the authorities there, Hsiao said.

The passports were returned to their holders on Wednesday local time, he said. The incident followed an earlier incident in which Ugandan immigration officials withheld the passports of two Taiwanese at

China has completed the first phase of construction on Antelope Reef (Lingyang Reef, 羚羊礁) in the Paracel Islands (Xisha Islands, 西沙群島), building an artificial island in the disputed South China Sea that analysts say will form part of its largest military base. Satellite images showed the reclaimed feature — which Taiwan also claims — in outline for the first time, with barges and dredgers having left after at least six months of work in the busy waterway.

The completion shows the South China Sea as an increasingly militarized arena of competition between China and the US and its allies. “The northern part of

A fire and subsequent explosion in a residential area in Tainan early yesterday injured 15 people and damaged 68 homes, the Tainan City Fire Bureau said. The bureau said it received a report at 1:12am yesterday that a pile of waste in a vacant lot in Annan District’s (安南) Haidian Road had caught fire and exploded, adding that it dispatched 144 firefighters and 53 firetrucks to battle the blaze and evacuate nearby residents.

It took more than four hours to extinguish the fire, it said. The incident damaged 11 privately owned vehicles, as well as eight fire engines, one ambulance and two disaster

DELUGE: The Tainan City Government requested five mobile water pumps from the central government to supplement the 511 pumps it had already prepared Torrential rain caused by the combined effects of southwesterly winds and a low-pressure belt battered southern Taiwan yesterday, causing widespread flooding across Tainan, Kaohsiung and Pingtung County. More than 2,300 people were evacuated as authorities warned of continued heavy rain through tomorrow.

Tainan, Kaohsiung and Pingtung County yesterday announced that work and classes would remain suspended today for the second consecutive day amid heavy rain and flooding. Chiayi, Hualien and Taitung counties later last night also announced that work and classes would be canceled today. The Kaohsiung City Government said it expected cumulative rainfall over the five-day period of the low-pressure system to