Bessent Says Iranian Airlines Will Be Shut Out of Airports Worldwide

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday that Iranian airlines will be effectively shut out of international travel by Wednesday, adding another front to the U.S. economic campaign against Tehran. “On September 23, all the Iranian airlines will be shut down around the world,” he said in an interview with CNBC, according to Al Jazeera.

The mechanism is secondary sanctions, which penalize foreign companies for doing business with sanctioned entities. Mr. Bessent said that if Iranian carriers land abroad, the airports, fuel suppliers, ticketing firms and other businesses that serve them could be cut off from the U.S. dollar system, Al Jazeera reported. Earlier this month the Treasury sanctioned all remaining Iranian airlines not previously targeted, along with non-Iranian companies accused of supporting Iran’s aviation sector, the outlet said.

Foreign carriers and governments were already moving to comply. Turkish Airlines has suspended all flights to Iran until at least March 2027, a company representative told Iran International by phone, adding that service might not resume even then. Two Iraqi government sources told AFP that Iraq will halt flights by Iranian airlines starting at dawn Tuesday, in line with the Treasury decision, according to Iran International. One official said Iraq “will enforce the ban,” the outlet reported. Iraq is a major destination for Iranian travelers, especially Shiite pilgrims, so the move is significant for religious travel, Iran International noted.

China is a pressure point. Mr. Bessent said Chinese officials were “very engaged” in the effort, according to Al Jazeera, after he met Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng ahead of a planned Trump-Xi summit and U.S. officials held talks with China’s central bank governor, Pan Gongsheng, about sanctions compliance. Al Jazeera did not report details of any Chinese commitments.

Iran’s aviation sector was already strained by years of sanctions that limit aircraft purchases, parts and maintenance, Al Jazeera reported. Al Jazeera did not report any response from the Iranian government to Mr. Bessent’s remarks.

Al Jazeera did not report any reaction from airlines or airports to the Treasury deadline, and it named no specific carriers affected.

The measure also touches ordinary travelers. Iranians already face tighter limits on international air travel, Iran International reported, and the grounding would further restrict movement for people who rely on the national carriers, including pilgrims headed to Iraq.