New Delhi, Aug. 25 -- an economic confrontation between Washington and Tehran was reshaping one of the planet's most critical chokepoints in real time.

The confrontation escalated sharply when U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, speaking in language more commonly reserved for military campaigns, declared the launch of "the single greatest financial offensive ever marshalled against an adversary." The announcement sanctioned nearly 60 entities, individuals, and vessels across five sectors, including digital assets, technology, gold, aviation, and shipping, while suspending general licences that had authorized remittance payments to Iran and cutting Iranian access to American cultural and academic systems. Trump personally called world ...