Camille Naredo

US President Donald Trump points during a press briefing in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, DC, shortly after a shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on April 25, 2026. Mandel Ngan, AFP/File

US President Donald Trump points during a press briefing in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, DC, shortly after a shooting incident at the White House Correspondents Dinner on April 25, 2026. US President Donald Trump said April 25 he would give a press conference from the White House press briefing room, shortly after a shooting incident at a gala dinner in Washington. The press conference is set to take place shortly after 10 p.m. (0200 GMT), Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, adding: "The First Lady, plus the Vice President, and all Cabinet members, are in perfect condition." (Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP)

Article (news)

White House Correspondents' Association Dinner

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787585357174AFP__20260426__A8Z33LR__v1__MidRes__WhiteHouseCorrespondentsAssociationDinner.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="US President Donald Trump points during a press briefing in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, DC, shortly after a shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on April 25, 2026. Mandel Ngan, AFP/File"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">US President Donald Trump points during a press briefing in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, DC, shortly after a shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on April 25, 2026. <em>Mandel Ngan, AFP/File</em></span></span></span></div><p>WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump said Monday that Iran was &quot;collapsing&quot; as Washington prepared to announce the details of a new economic pressure campaign that Tehran has derided as an admission of defeat.</p><p>Almost six months into their war, the two sides are locked in a stalemate, with peace talks stalled, Iran keeping the key Strait of Hormuz shut and Washington persisting with a naval counter-blockade of Iran.</p><p>Under political pressure at home over the economic impacts of the conflict, Trump has pivoted away from military action to economic levers.</p><p>&quot;IRAN IS COMPLETELY COLLAPSING!!!&quot; the president posted Monday in his trademark all-caps style on his social media platform Truth Social.</p><div><a class="fr-strong fr-green" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/business/2026/8/24/oil-falls-as-trump-pledges-economic-war-on-iran-1652">READ: Oil falls as Trump pledges economic war on Iran</a></div><p>His remarks came hours after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in a column for the Financial Times, declared that an &quot;economic D-Day&quot; had begun against Tehran and warned that any country that continued to enable the Islamic republic would become a &quot;global pariah&quot;.</p><p>Bessent also claimed on X that the US had &quot;dismantled Iran&#x27;s military capabilities, destroyed nearly 100 percent of its military factories, and buried its nuclear program&quot;.</p><p>Iran responded with defiance, saying the latest US measures were an admission of military defeat, and it warned countries against aiding Washington.</p><p>Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi posted on X that the US turn to financial warfare proved Bessent&#x27;s claims false.</p><p>&quot;Your narrative doesn&#x27;t add up,&quot; Gharibabadi said, asking why, if Washington had achieved its goals, &quot;there is a need for &#x27;the largest financial invasion in history&#x27; and the mobilization of &#x27;all institutions and powers&#x27; of the United States!</p><p>&quot;Is this a victory or an admission of America&#x27;s defeat?&quot;</p><p>The US and Israel linked the launch of their war in February to Iran&#x27;s nuclear program, but the focus since the early days of fighting has been on the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global oil and gas supplies.</p><p>Tehran continues to blockade the strait, which it did not restrict before the war, driving up global inflation and heaping domestic pressure on Trump ahead of mid-term elections in November.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>- Oil exports plunge -</strong></div><p>Bessent was due to set out details of the US plan on Monday, but it is unclear how much more economic pressure Washington can put on Tehran.</p><p>The US naval blockade of Iran has seen its oil exports via the Strait of Hormuz fall from two million barrels a day pre-war to just 0.4 million by mid-August, according to maritime tracker Kpler.</p><p>Meanwhile, the country has been under crushing international sanctions for decades, with a brief period of easing under a 2015 nuclear deal that Trump later ripped up as part of a &quot;maximum pressure&quot; campaign.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2026/8/22/iran-president-says-time-to-end-war-while-in-position-of-strength-0939">READ: Iran president says time to end war while in position of strength</a></div><p>The Islamic republic has weathered those efforts and, before the war, continued to export millions of barrels of oil, mostly to China, and evade sanctions through complex international financial networks.</p><p>Bessent and Trump have both warned countries against helping Iran, signalling a shift in their focus, with the Treasury secretary&#x27;s FT column dwelling on nations who &quot;appease&quot; and &quot;enable&quot; Iran.</p><div><a class="fr-strong fr-green" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2026/8/20/trump-threatens-economic-punishment-on-any-country-helping-iran-0907">READ: Trump threatens economic punishment on &#x27;any country&#x27; helping Iran</a></div><p>Tehran responded on Monday by warning countries not to cooperate with the US efforts. Foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said taking part would &quot;definitely have its own consequences&quot;.</p><p>For ordinary Iranians, the standoff is likely to bring only more economic pain after years of rampant inflation, which in December and January fueled massive anti-government protests.</p><p>Sarah Hassanbeigi, a 32-year-old pharmacist in Tehran, put it simply: &quot;It&#x27;s really very difficult. I don&#x27;t think people can really take this much longer.&quot;</p><p>On Sunday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian admitted that Iran faced &quot;many problems in society&quot;.</p><p>&quot;We are striving with all our hearts to overcome inflation, livelihood problems, unemployment, and to secure the future of the people, so that they can live with dignity and pride,&quot; Pezeshkian said.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>- Delegation from Pakistan -</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="960" height="540" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EXygTULzzto?autoplay=1&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></div><p>Last week, the Iranian president, considered a relative moderate, said Tehran should &quot;bring the war to an end now as we are in a position of power and dignity&quot;.</p><p>That followed supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei appointing hardliners to key security positions.</p><p>Hassanbeigi said she wanted peace. &quot;Naturally, negotiations mean that both sides have to compromise. My personal opinion is that Iran should compromise now,&quot; she told AFP.</p><p>Throughout the war, diplomatic efforts, pushed on by mediators, have sought a negotiated end to the conflict.</p><p>On Monday, Pakistan&#x27;s army chief was expected in Iran. Islamabad was a leading mediator in talks that helped secure an April ceasefire that later fell apart.</p><p>Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi was also due in Iran on Tuesday, as Muscat and Tehran seek a deal on regulating passage through Hormuz.</p>

<p>US President Donald Trump said Monday that Iran was "collapsing" as Washington prepared to announce the details of a new economic pressure campaign that Tehran has derided as an admission of defeat.</p>

US President Donald Trump said Monday that Iran was "collapsing" as Washington prepared to announce the details of a new economic pressure campaign that Tehran has derided as an admission of defeat.

Trump claims Iran 'collapsing' as US threatens 'economic D-Day'

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Trump claims Iran 'collapsing' as US threatens 'economic D-Day'

AFP teams in Washington,

Tehran and Dubai

Published August 24, 2026 11:40 PM PHT

|

Updated August 24, 2026 11:41 PM PHT

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Washington

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