Iran urges other nations not to join new US sanctions, mediators focus on reopening strait
By Elwely Elwelly and Eman Abouhassira
DUBAI, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Iran condemned the United States' new economic sanctions on Friday as "state terrorism" and said other countries were legally obliged not to implement them, while the U.S. Treasury Department announced additional targeted Iran-related measures.
The Iranian foreign ministry's statement came as mediators stepped up efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which handled 20% of world oil supplies before the war began six months ago and whose status remains the biggest obstacle to a peace deal.
President Donald Trump's administration on Monday warned countries to cut their business ties with Iran or face secondary sanctions as part of what it billed as an "economic D-Day," though the Treasury Department stopped short of actually imposing penalties.
Trump reiterated on Thursday that the U.S. was not talking with Iran, while the White House said Washington's economic campaign would continue until Tehran decided to "come to the table in a meaningful way".
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Friday that all countries were obligated under international law to refrain from implementing U.S. sanctions against Tehran, adding that participation in them amounted to complicity in imposing one state’s unlawful will on independent states.
It branded the new U.S. measures a "crime against humanity" that put the health and livelihood of millions of civilians at serious risk, and called on other nations and United Nations bodies to uphold the rule of law.
NEW MEASURES TARGET EGYPTIAN BANK
Later on Friday, a U.S. official told Reuters the Trump administration plans to impose limits on Egypt's Banque Misr for doing business with Tehran by revoking U.S. financial access to its branches in the United Arab Emirates.
The official said the proposed rule, if finalised, would withdraw Banque Misr UAE's correspondent banking access to U.S. financial institutions.
Treasury officials separately issued sanctions targeting one entity based in Hong Kong and one person linked to Iran's Bank Melli, according to a notice posted on the department's website.
With the U.S. focused on its economic pressure campaign, others have sought to revive diplomatic efforts to end the war.
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said he had stressed during talks with Iranian leaders in Tehran on Thursday the importance of returning to the pre-war status of open shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
'PRESSURE DOESN'T WORK,' IRAN TELLS US
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi on Friday described the talks with Al Thani as "creative", and he renewed his appeal to the U.S. to stop putting military and economic pressure on his country and to resume negotiations.
"Putting diplomacy back on track isn't impossible. It hinges on U.S. understanding of one simple fact: pressure doesn't work," Araqchi said on X.
Qatar, a U.S. ally, and Pakistan helped broker a memorandum of understanding in June that led to a ceasefire but that quickly unravelled due to disagreements between Iran and the U.S. over the Strait of Hormuz.
IRANIAN LEVERAGE
After the U.S. and Israel launched the war on February 28, Iran threatened to strike any vessel transiting the strait without its authorisation, driving down traffic and sending up the price of oil, providing Tehran with leverage in the bargain.
The U.S. insists that the strait remain an open international waterway.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said on Thursday Iran was preparing a list of conditions for reopening the strait.
In the past Iran's conditions have included an end to the U.S. blockade on Iranian ports, compensation and removal of sanctions. It remained unclear whether Iran intended to amend those demands in a way that might be acceptable to Washington.
CLEARING SEA MINES
U.S. military commanders say American forces have cleared sea mines from the strait that had been laid months ago by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
"Bottom line: today, international shipping lanes are open and momentum is building," Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of the U.S. military's Central Command, said in a video message posted on social media.
Trump has repeatedly said the strait was open, but many vessels have opted against sailing through it because of Iranian threats, and ship tracking services have estimated activity at roughly 5% to 15% of normal volumes.
Preliminary shipping data released on Friday showed that only seven commodity vessels had transited the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, down from 17 a day earlier and below the 10-day average of 15.
However, oil prices fell on Friday and were on track for a weekly drop, amid what analysts said were signs that more oil was flowing through the strait despite the diplomatic stalemate and that producers were increasingly adapting to the new realities in the Gulf region.
(Additional reporting by Ahmed Tolba and Enas Elashray in Cairo; Writing by Daniel Trotta and Gareth Jones; Editing by Kim Coghill and Sharon Singleton)
