00:00U.S. Treasury Chief Scott Besant says the U.S. will impose, quote,
00:04the toughest sanctions in history on Iran. He suggests this move will lessen the need
00:08for new major military operations. This comes after U.S. President Donald Trump's threat of
00:13economic warfare and warning of economic consequences against any country that provided
00:18any type of lifeline to Iran. But Besant says details will come by next week.
00:23Oil prices rose to more than a three-week high on Thursday, August 20, following these threats of
00:28financial penalties aimed at ending the nearly six-month-old war that has stranded millions
00:32of barrels of Middle Eastern oil. Besant tells CNBC, if you're doing the maximum economic pressure,
00:38then that means that likely there will not be a large-scale kinetic restart. He was referring
00:42to military force. The war has pulled in other Gulf nations and shocked markets as Iran strangled
00:48the Strait of Hormuz where a fifth of global oil trade passes. The U.S. and Iran have twice
00:53announced ceasefire deals in April and June but both quickly fell through.
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