Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says US to press ahead in Iran war with Hormuz in sights

Scott Bessent

• US-Israeli strikes hit Iran defenses near Strait of Hormuz
• Trump demands Iran reopen the waterway by Monday
• Gasoline prices rise 34% amid ongoing conflict and oil concerns

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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said US-Israeli attacks on Iran are aimed at destroying its fortifications along the Strait of Hormuz while Iranian leaders face a Monday deadline from President Donald Trump to reopen the waterway.

Donald Trump will “take whatever steps it takes” to achieve stated US goals including destroying Iran’s air force and navy, denying it the ability to have nuclear weapons and “their ability to project power internationally,” Bessent said Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s comments, combined with Trump’s demand Saturday that Iran “fully open, without threat” the strait, were a signal of resolve as spiking oil and gasoline prices put domestic pressure on the administration in a midterm election year.

“There has been a campaign to the using military assets to soften up the Iranian fortifications along the strait that’s going to continue until they are completely demolished,” Bessent said. “Sometimes you have to escalate to de-escalate.”

With the war in its fourth week, elevated crude prices are rippling through the economy. The average US price of a gallon of regular gasoline is 34% higher than a month ago, according to the American Automobile Association. United Airlines Holdings Inc. Chief Executive Officer Scott Kirby warned last week of $175 oil prices that would dramatically drive up jet-fuel costs.

Trump and his top aides argue that temporarily higher prices are worth the goal of eliminating the long-term threat from Iran.

“Let’s just pick 50 days of temporary elevated prices,” Bessent told NBC. “Prices will come off on the other side for 50 years of not having an Iranian regime with a nuclear weapon.”

Asked about the timeline for oil prices to recede, he clarified that “I don’t know whether it’s going to be 50 days. I don’t know whether it’s going to be a hundred days.”