The warning comes as US President Donald Trump threatens to isolate Iran economically and weaken its government.
Published August 22, 2026
Iran has threatened to treat neighboring countries as enemies and target their interests if they join the U.S. campaign to paralyze their economies.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, issued the warning in an interview on state broadcaster IRIB on Saturday.
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“We are telling our neighbors not to take part in America’s economic war, otherwise we will consider them our enemies,” Rezaei told the IRIB news agency.
His comments came in the wake of escalating economic threats posed by the administration of US President Donald Trump.
On Wednesday, President Trump announced that his administration would launch its “most devastating economic operation” ever against Iran as part of continued hostilities between the two countries.
The United States and Israel have been at war with Iran since February 28, when the two allies launched their first salvo of attacks on Tehran.
In addition to threatening Iran’s economy, President Trump this week vowed to have “tremendous economic consequences” for countries that provide “any type of lifeline” to Iran.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent echoed his threat the next day, saying, “You’re either with us or you’re against us.”
In an interview on Saturday, Rezaei described Iran’s regional strategy as a three-step sequence, starting with efforts to reduce tensions with neighboring countries.
“First we negotiate. Then we try to lure them away from America with pleasant terms, because we don’t really want to escalate the war,” he said.
Countries that continue to stand by the United States will be given time to reconsider, he said. “But in the third stage, we will definitely act.”
Although the United States has not stopped military operations against Iran, Rezaei suggested that the Trump administration is betting that economic pressure will divide Iranian society and force an end to the war.
“They want to break our unity, hopefully through economic pressure, and get groups of protesters to take to the streets and, in a sense, help the American F-35,” he said, referring to a type of military aircraft.
Negotiations to end the conflict have stalled in recent months following the failure of a June 17 memorandum of understanding (MoU) that called for an “immediate and permanent cessation of military operations.”
Sea control of the Strait of Hormuz, the main shipping lane off the coast of Iran, is a persistent point of conflict between the United States and Iran.
In the early stages of the war, Iran quickly moved to cut off traffic in the strait, causing prices for products such as oil and fertilizer to soar.
Middle Eastern countries that previously relied on the strait for exports are beginning to pursue alternative trade routes.
But Rezaei warned that if regional countries join the US economic war plan, Iran will target alternative oil shipping routes from the Gulf.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry also on Saturday condemned future U.S. measures as an assertion of “extraterritorial sovereignty” against United Nations member states.
The Iranian government is also reportedly considering expanding its target list beyond the Middle East, with media outlets reporting that it could attack U.S. allies in Europe that have supported President Trump’s operations.
