File: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian looks on as he attends a press conference with Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (not pictured), in Tehran, Iran . March 12,2025.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Sunday said that his country was facing “many problems” and that authorities were striving “to overcome inflation, livelihood problems, unemployment, and to secure the future of the people”. His comments came after the US vowed last week to bring about the “collapse” of the regime through a newly announced sanctions campaign.
US urges allies and China to join Iran economic pressure campaign
The United States on Thursday urged allies and China to join its campaign to isolate Iran’s economy, as President Donald Trump seeks to intensify pressure on Tehran amid a stalemate in the war and growing domestic criticism.
Warned allies and China to join President Donald Trump’s new campaign to isolate the Iranian economy, vowing that Washington would “collapse this regime” in Tehran
Iran branded the US threats as “economic terrorism” and said they would fail.
Under fire at home over the impact of the war and with crucial midterm elections looming, Trump had on Wednesday promised the “most crushing” economic operation ever against Iran.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent echoed the president’s comments, doubling down on economic pressure on Tehran as Trump’s unpopular war drags towards the six-month mark.
“Any remaining tie to Tehran will hasten a nation’s economic oblivion, whether that tie be purposefully constructed or willfully ignored,” Bessent said on X.
Neither Trump nor his Treasury chief has set out the measures they are planning against Iran. Bessent said he would give more details during a press conference on Monday.
Macron hosts Saudi crown prince for two-day visit to include issues from energy to Mideast
Saudi crown prince and de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) was welcomed on Sunday by French President Emmanuel Macron for a two-day visit to the country. Several agreements on health, transport and energy will be signed on the second day of the visit on Monday underlining the strength of the Paris-Riyadh relationship.
More than 100 former French and UK diplomats urge action against Israeli settlement policies
Dozens of former senior French and UK diplomats on Saturday urged their governments to work together to uphold international law in the Palestinian territories, accusing Israel of seeking to “destroy” any prospect of a viable Palestinian state.
The 102 signatories of the letter published in Le Monde included former British ambassadors to the UN Jeremy Greenstock and Emyr Jones Parry as well the former directors for the Middle East at the French foreign ministry Yves Aubin de la Messuzière and Denis Bauchard.
How the Strait of Hormuz Could Move Oil Prices and Global Stock Markets
The current US-Iran conflict has again turned the Strait of Hormuz into the central fault line for global markets. Iran’s message is that the waterway will stay closed until Washington changes its behaviour, while the US position remains rooted in heavier economic pressure and deterrence. Since the last de-escalation deal, oil had briefly lost some of its geopolitical premium as traders assumed a lower probability of shipping disruption, but that calm has reversed as the renewed stand-off reintroduced supply risk into crude markets. The escalation matters because this is not only a military or diplomatic story; it is also an inflation, shipping and portfolio-allocation story. When investors fear that energy flows could be disrupted, they typically move into a risk-off posture, reducing appetite for cyclical sectors and becoming more defensive across global equities. That is why stock markets from Asia to Europe to the US have become more sensitive to headlines around tanker access, sanctions and retaliatory threats.
FRANCE24/ AFP
