Iran Vows 'Crushing' Response as US Sanctions Loom

Trump has said the U.S. will launch the "most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country," describing it as "Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale," and has threatened financial penalties against any nation that gives Iran "any type of lifeline."

Vice President JD Vance said on a podcast that economic pressure is America's "most effective tool" against Iran. He called the standoff "a delicate dance," but said "what has been true over the last couple of weeks is they felt a lot more pressure than we have."

Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf told an event in Baghdad on Friday that Muslim countries must draw up a plan to overcome "cruel" sanctions, according to a government summary of his remarks. Qalibaf said Tehran had received "numerous messages" from neighboring countries about new regional security arrangements, and accused the U.S. of endangering the security of its own regional allies for Israel's sake.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who has called for a diplomatic solution, said Friday that "it would be better to end the war today, when we are powerful and have dignity," per the ISNA news agency.

Helima Croft, head of global commodity strategy at RBC Capital Markets, told CNBC that Iran is already one of the most sanctioned countries in the world and that it is not clear whether Washington will go after Iran's partners China and Russia. Tehran, she said, appears to believe it can outlast the United States.