EU joins US-led “Operation Economic Outcast” targeting Iran’s financial networks

The European Union has endorsed a U.S.-led campaign aimed at increasing economic pressure on Iran, drawing praise from U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent as Washington seeks to further restrict Tehran’s access to the global financial system.

Bessent said on X on September 3 that the EU had joined “Operation Economic Outcast,” a sanctions initiative launched by the Trump administration in late August, Caliber.Az reports. 

The European Union has officially joined Operation Economic Outcast and we appreciate their strong and early stance. The United States stands firm with our allies in ensuring the murderous Iranian regime cannot exploit the global financial system to fund its nuclear ambitions,…

— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) September 3, 2026

The campaign is designed to disrupt financial channels that Washington says Iran uses to support its nuclear and weapons programs and allied militant groups.

“The United States stands firm with our allies in ensuring the murderous Iranian regime cannot exploit the global financial system to fund its nuclear ambitions, weapons programs, and terror proxies,” Bessent wrote on X.

The European bloc said earlier in a statement on August 31 that it supported efforts to counter what it described as Iran’s “destabilizing activities” while seeking to create conditions for a return to diplomatic negotiations.

As part of that approach, the EU expressed support for additional economic pressure on Tehran, including measures under Operation Economic Outcast.

Bessent said the United States and its allies would continue applying pressure until Iran’s remaining international financial channels were closed.

“The world is sending a clear message to the Iranian regime: We will not stop until every remaining financial lifeline has been severed,” he said.

By Sabina Mammadli