Iran threatens maritime exclusion zone if US 'economic warfare' continues

Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has warned that U.S. energy companies could face retaliatory strikes if Washington proceeds with threats to attack Iranian oil tankers. Ghalibaf stated that the oil and gas production chain is accessible and exposed, and that American companies share this vulnerability.

This escalation follows U.S. strikes that disabled three Iranian crude oil carriers, identified as M/T Downy, M/T Stark 1, and M/T Kylo, between September 5 and 6. The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) reported that these strikes were in response to alleged Iranian attacks on U.S. Navy vessels.

Ghalibaf asserted that the era of proportionate responses has ended and that any aggression against Iran's interests would receive a faster, more intense, and more painful response. He suggested that if Iran's energy exports are targeted, neighboring Gulf states' oil shipments would also be affected, framing Gulf oil exports in binary terms: "Either all or none."

Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, further warned that if the US continued its "economic warfare" against Tehran, it could be met with the establishment of a maritime exclusion zone across the Persian Gulf. Rezaei stated that the operational posture toward U.S. warships and bases has been fundamentally recalibrated.

The Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway through which approximately 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas passes, is a focal point of the tensions. Ghalibaf singled out Kharg Island, Iran's primary oil export terminal, as a potential flashpoint, warning that an attack on such infrastructure could draw the U.S. into an "endless quagmire."