President Donald Trump is signaling, at least for now, he is prepared to let mounting economic pressure on Iran do more of the work rather than immediately expand military action against Tehran."We are only semi-negotiating with them.We are just watching Iran with its huge inflation and the fact they have no money," Trump told Axios’ Barak Ravid in a phone interview Sunday.
Axios reported Aug.9 that Trump described the U.S.
approach as "low-keying it" and said Iran was in severe economic distress and struggling to pay its troops.Trump has argued that the U.S.naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz has compounded Iran’s financial crisis.
His comments come after weeks in which the administration repeatedly raised the possibility of renewed large-scale military action. But as the administration increasingly points to Iran’s financial distress as leverage, a more complicated question is emerging: How much of Iran’s economic crisis is the result of U.S.sanctions, the war and blockade — and how much stems from decades of corruption, economic mismanagement and spending decisions by the Islamic Republic itself?IRAN’S DEEPEST WEAKNESS IS GETTING EXPOSED THROUGH AMERICA’S MAXIMUM PRESSURE CAMPAIGNAn Iranian woman shops in a local market in Tehran, Iran, April 28, 2026.
(Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters)Trump reinforced the message on Truth Social Sunday, writing that Iran had shown "51 years of bad behaviour" while sharing a graphic depicting the Iranian rial’s steep decline.The graphic was titled "Iran has NO MONEY" and described the currency as "trash."The economic pressure is increasingly visible in the daily lives of ordinary Iranians.
An investigation published by the Iranian newspaper Jahan-e Sanat last week described supermarket workers encountering customers who allegedly shoplifted basic groceries including bread, cheese and meat, or ate packaged food inside stores because they could no longer afford it.The accounts offe...