Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is set to hold a press conference Monday to detail what he described as the most aggressive economic isolation campaign ever directed at a single country: Iran. The plan would combine extreme economic pressure with a naval blockade of Iranian ports, while seeking to compel Tehran to surrender its highly enriched uranium stockpile and provide credible assurances that it has abandoned ambitions to develop nuclear weapons. The measures build on escalating pressure throughout 2026, including a temporary 60-day general license issued around late June that allowed limited Iranian oil production in exchange for commitments related to maritime transit through the Strait of Hormuz and International Atomic Energy Agency oversight. Iran’s role as a major oil producer and the passage of roughly one-fifth of global daily oil consumption through the strait make any tightening or revocation of the license significant for energy markets. Bessent has framed the policy as a carrots-and-sticks strategy, using relief when Iran cooperates and increased economic pressure when it does not. He has also said maximum economic pressure could reduce the need for further U.S. military operations, while arguing that the oil market misunderstood the policy’s meaning. Separately, Bessent said interest rates were unrelated to repo decisions and that adjustments would be made to any reduction involving the Federal Reserve’s Treasury holdings.