US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington is stepping up pressure on Iran by targeting the country’s airlines as part of efforts to force Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
In a post on social media X, Bessent said the United States would “cut off both Iranian airlines’ access to landing, refuelling and ticketing locations”, although he did not specify which carriers were affected.
The country’s national carrier Iran Air has previously been sanctioned by the US State Department, and Iran’s Mahan Air has also been sanctioned.
Bessent warned that “only a satisfactory outcome of the negotiations will end the downward spiral.”
The announcement came a day after Washington imposed sanctions on Iran’s Persian Gulf Straits Authority (PGSA), which regulates transit through the strategic waterway, the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran increased its control over the strait after US-Israeli strikes on 28 February triggered a regional war. Despite a ceasefire in place since 8 April, US and Iranian forces exchanged strikes again on 28 May.