US Dictator on August 24, 2026. Photo: AP.
Ynet examines whether expanded US sanctions can achieve what military force has failed to accomplish against Iran, amid doubts over their effectiveness.
The Trump administration has announced a significant expansion of economic sanctions against Iran, raising the central question of whether economic pressure can achieve what military force has not, Ynet reported on Tuesday.
Even after discounting the bombastic rhetoric that accompanies nearly every move by Trump, particularly when Iran is involved, the expansion of the sanctions mechanism marks a fundamental shift in the rules of the US war on Iran, according to Ynet. The strategy, according to the analysis, involves striking Iranian infrastructure from the outside while tightening the economic noose from within.
Ynet reported that the change has been needed for some time and was delayed unnecessarily. The outlet noted that the approach is not unprecedented; however, history offers no guarantee that it will succeed.
The central feature of this new phase in Washington’s economic campaign is the threatened use of secondary sanctions, a cumbersome mechanism that goes considerably further than the primary restrictions already imposed on Iran, according to Ynet.
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Questions over effectiveness of economic strategy
The larger question raised by Ynet is whether secondary sanctions designed to isolate the Islamic Republic almost completely from global trade and finance can achieve what the United States and “Israel” have struggled to accomplish through military force. A sober reading of economic history suggests caution, according to the report.
Ynet noted that many isolated countries pulled through in the face of sanctions, pointing out that there are many examples and that very few such governments simply raise their hands and surrender.
The report maintains that this does not mean Washington’s economic campaign against Iran has no chance of succeeding; it suggested that it may have a meaningful chance of shifting the balance inside Iran itself, strengthening more pragmatic and nationally minded elements of the establishment at the expense of its most ideological and militant factions, and perhaps opening a path toward an agreement.
Factors for success remain uncertain
Success would depend on several factors at once, according to Ynet: close international cooperation, the willingness of key countries to comply with Washington’s demands and, above all, persistence and patience. The report indicated that those last two qualities may prove decisive.
Ynet’s analysis raised questions about whether the volatile Trump administration possesses those qualities. The report also questioned whether an Israeli government drawn repeatedly toward force and chaos would demonstrate the necessary persistence and patience.
The administration’s economic campaign against Iran continues to unfold as Ynet assesses the potential outcomes of the new sanctions framework. The full impact of the measures remains to be seen, according to the report.
