Hegseth: Military Option Remains on Table for Iran

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Monday that the Trump administration has not ruled out further military strikes on Iran even as it escalates a sweeping new economic pressure campaign against Tehran, according to multiple outlets covering remarks he made during a visit to Wisconsin.

Speaking to reporters while touring defense manufacturing facilities, Hegseth was blunt about the administration's posture. "By no means are we foreclosing using kinetic strikes anywhere in the Strait of Hormuz or around Iran," Hegseth told reporters, adding that Iran could not handle the economic pressure being put on it. The Hill reported that when asked directly whether strikes were currently on pause, Hegseth told reporters in Oshkosh, Wis. as part of the Pentagon's "Arsenal of Freedom" tour, "If we need to use kinetic strikes, we'll use them. If Iran is foolish enough to overplay their hand or mess with the with the American military, we'll do what we need to do." He added, according to NBC News, "But economic pressure, we know, hurts them the most right now."

The comments came the same day Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent unveiled what he called "Operation Economic Outcast," a campaign the Israel National News described as an unprecedented US campaign aimed at isolating Iran economically and cutting off the sources of revenue available to the Iranian regime. Bessent compared the launch to a historic military campaign, telling reporters, "Today, in that same spirit, we are launching an economic onslaught against Iran's financial connections around the globe," and that "Our objective is to sever every economic lifeline that sustains this tyrannical regime until Tehran stands alone." The Jerusalem Post reported that Bessent described the operation as "a sustained campaign to collapse every last option for Iran," warning that those involved in "any" economic cooperation with Tehran would expose themselves to "the full reach of American power." Turkiye Today noted that the package targets nearly 60 entities, individuals, and vessels and expands the risk of secondary sanctions for third parties doing business with Iran.

The dual-track approach comes against the backdrop of a prolonged conflict. Al Jazeera reported that the economic pressure campaign comes nearly six months into the war with Iran, after the US and Israel launched strikes against the country without direct provocation, and that while US and Israeli attacks have killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and several other top officials, they have failed to dislodge the governing system in Tehran. The outlet added that Tehran has responded to the US and Israeli strikes with missile and drone attacks across the region.

Iranian officials have pushed back on Washington's approach. Turkiye Today reported that Iranian officials urged Washington to change its behavior and take concrete steps to implement the terms of the agreement signed in June, even as an Iranian official acknowledged the economic toll on Iranians, citing inflation, currency pressure and shortages, but said efforts to disrupt Iran's financial and economic flows would not necessarily achieve Washington's intended result.

The standoff also carries domestic political risk for the White House. NBC News reported that the war has also become a political liability for Trump ahead of November's midterm elections, with his approval rating dropping to its lowest level of either of his presidential terms.

Hegseth framed the administration's control of a key waterway as leverage over Tehran. According to yourNEWS, Hegseth's reference to the Strait of Hormuz is particularly significant because of the waterway's importance to global energy shipments, a point he underscored by arguing Iran could no longer move oil through the passage while American forces could. The inkl wire service, citing Hegseth's remarks, reported that the US War Secretary said the United States is prepared to use military force against Iran, including in the Strait of Hormuz, while continuing to exert economic pressure on Tehran.

No timeline for potential military action was given, and officials framed sanctions as the immediate priority. Bessent, for his part, said the sanctions campaign would continue indefinitely, declaring according to the Jerusalem Post that Operation Economic Outcast would continue until Iran "stands alone." Whether that pressure pushes Tehran back to the table, or whether Washington eventually resorts to force, remained an open question that officials on both sides continued to weigh as the standoff entered its seventh month.