U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday that all Iranian airlines would cease operations from September 23, due to the threat of secondary sanctions against aviation service providers. He said Chinese officials were significantly involved in the U.S. economic pressure campaign against Iran.
Restrictions on aviation services
Following talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, Bessent said the sanctions would prevent companies from providing aviation services to Iranian airlines, on pain of being excluded from the dollar-based financial system.
When an Iranian aircraft lands at any airport, you cannot refuel it, provide landing services for it or sell tickets for it, or you will be excluded from the dollar-based financial system.
Discussions with Chinese authorities on sanctions
Bessent added that the United States was holding “positive discussions” with Chinese financial authorities, including People’s Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng, on compliance with U.S. sanctions imposed on Iran.
Trade and artificial intelligence
In a parallel track, Bessent described the talks he held on Sunday with Chinese officials on trade and artificial intelligence as “very successful,” ahead of the expected summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington this week.
Bessent said the two sides discussed establishing a mutual notification mechanism for artificial intelligence incidents posing security risks, to be known as the “U.S.-China Dialogue on Artificial Intelligence,” adding that they had agreed to hold further meetings.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer also took part in the talks, which lasted about 8 hours and covered trade, the possibility of reducing tariffs on some non-sensitive goods, supply chains and rare earth minerals. Greer said: “It is absolutely essential that we be able to work together.”
The talks preceded the planned Trump-Xi summit in Washington, as the two sides sought to continue managing trade and technology disputes and discuss supply chains and geopolitical tensions.
