TEHRAN – Iran’s economy minister on Sunday dismissed U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s recent statements about intensifying sanctions and economic pressure, declaring that the notion of altering the decisions of the Iranian nation through economic pressure is “a mistake.”
Seyyed Ali Madanizadeh, responding to recent statements by U.S. officials about economic pressure, isolating Iran and cutting off financial communications, said that Iran’s economy is “a vast collection of people, enterprises, entrepreneurs, producers, exporters, traders, farmers, engineers and millions of economic actors who, over the years and under the harshest sanctions conditions, have found new ways to produce, trade and finance.”
He added that despite the pressures and difficulties, “trade, production, exports and imports continue in the country, and essential goods needed by the people are being well supplied.” 
The lack of cooperation by many countries with U.S. policies, as well as dialogue and follow-ups with regional countries and aligned nations, have prevented the enemy’s sanctions objectives from being realized, he said.
Madanizadeh emphasized that the government does not deny the country’s economic problems, but stressed: “The responsibility for reforming Iran’s economy lies with the government and the people of Iran, not the U.S. Treasury.” 
“They speak of the collapse and suffocation of Iran’s economy, but we speak of reforming the economic structure, increasing productivity, developing trade and production, attracting investment, and expanding economic relations.”
He outlined the government’s economic strategy as diversifying trade partners, developing regional trade, strengthening the private sector, reducing budget dependence on oil revenues, increasing non-oil exports, reforming trade corridors, reforming the banking system, attracting investment and controlling inflation. 
“We run Iran’s economy for the life and welfare of the Iranian people, not for Washington’s satisfaction,” he said.
The minister said there is a great distance between enduring economic costs and surrendering, stating that the Iranian nation has paid a heavy price over the years but will never surrender. 
“If the enemy’s goal is to pressure Iran, our response will be economic resistance alongside economic reforms.”
“The future of Iran will be built by the Iranian people, and the future of Iran will be determined by the Iranian people — with will, planning and in their own interests,” he said.
“They can make our financial paths difficult, but they cannot sanction the will of a nation to build its own economy,” he said. “Just as they could not defeat the Iranian nation with the world’s largest military, they will not achieve their goals in the economic war.”
Madanizadeh traveled to Moscow Sunday before attending the BRICS finance ministers’ meeting in India, describing the two trips as part of a broader strategy to counter sanctions and economic war rather than separate diplomatic engagements.
“These trips should not be seen as two separate events; the trip to Moscow is for bilateral consultations and the trip to India is for attending the BRICS summit and extensive consultations with economic ministers, especially in these circumstances of countering the economic war against our country,” he said.
He said one of the most important programs in the Russia trip is bilateral economic consultations and following up on joint memoranda of understanding and contracts that had been coordinated and are set to be signed.
The economy minister described Russia as one of Iran’s important partners, saying the country has “very broad capacities” for developing economic relations between the two countries, from trade and investment to financial relations and energy and transportation infrastructure.
He identified the development of north-south international corridors as a key priority. “Iran can play a very important role in connecting Russia’s economy and northern countries to southern markets, especially India,” he said. 
“Developing transport and transit infrastructure is not merely a construction project but part of Iran’s long-term economic development program to become a major regional trade route.”
Madanizadeh said the BRICS finance ministers’ meeting in India will address development finance, banking and financial cooperation, trade and investment facilitation, and the role of emerging economies in the international financial system. 
He pointed to proposals involving markets for strategic commodities, a BRICS energy market, joint investment funds, and bilateral or multilateral monetary agreements.
He emphasized that the Ministry of Economy is working to transform economic diplomacy from a “merely political and ceremonial concept into a practical instrument for economic growth and development.” 
The Russia trip and subsequent attendance at the BRICS summit are defined within this framework. 
“Our goal is clear: to use the capacity of foreign relations to counter sanctions and economic war, to strengthen the domestic economy, develop trade and production, attract financial resources and investment, and create new opportunities for Iran’s economy.”
The comments come as the U.S. intensifies its economic terrorist against Iran. 
Iran’s top military commander warned that the U.S. and Israel would fail in their economic and soft warfare efforts against Iran.
Major General Ali Abdollahi, Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, said at a specialized meeting that the United States has “not heard ‘no’ from any country for more than 80 years,” and has wrongly assumed Iran will surrender before its aggression.
“The Zionist and American enemies are trying to compensate for their strategic gaps and defeats with soft war, cognitive warfare and economic pressure,” Abdollahi said. 
“But by God’s grace and with the courage of the people and the prudence of the country’s officials, they will certainly fail in this arena as well and add another defeat to their humiliating record in the military war against Iran”.
Abdollahi stressed the need for national cohesion and mobilization of all resources. 
“We must use all national and transnational capacities against the enemy in confronting soft and cognitive warfare,” he said, adding that commanders and officers operating in this field carry significant responsibilities.