Iran President Warns Economic Crisis Is Greater Threat Than War

Maszúd Peszeskján Warns of Severe Domestic Crisis as Iran-US Conflict Enters Seventh Month

The war we are currently facing cannot be solved merely with weapons and rockets, Iranian President Maszúd Peszeskján stated at a health-focused event, adding that while those threats exist, the economic situation they create is worse and the government has a duty to solve people’s problems. The conflict between the United States and Iran has lasted for more than half a year without signs of a near resolution, while inflation soars and food prices climb rapidly, threatening renewed public discontent following widespread protests at the end of 2025.

Contradictory Claims Surround the Closure of the Strategic Hormuzi-Strait

While the political and economic pressures mount inside Tehran, officials and foreign governments offer sharply conflicting accounts regarding control over vital energy corridors. Mohammad Rezanagdi told the semi-official Fars news agency that the Hormuzi-Strait is closed and fully under the control of the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran, asserting that smaller oil-smuggling boats use blasted-rock routes to transfer shipments to larger tankers. That claim stands in direct contrast to assessments from Washington. United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that Iran has lost total control over the strait, which currently handles nearly the same volume of oil shipments as it did before the conflict erupted in February.

Iran Ties Waterway Reopening to US Agreement

The political stalemate centers on unfulfilled diplomatic agreements and disputed shipping volumes. Mohammad Baker Kalibaf, the Iranian parliamentary speaker, announced that Iran will only reopen the waterway if the United States fulfills the conditions defined in a tentative June agreement. Concurrently, preliminary data from the ship-tracking firm Kpler indicate that regional crude oil exports rebounded close to pre-war levels in September, registering a seven-day moving average of 18.3 million barrels per day through September 30, with exports exceeding pre-war benchmarks on 14 days of the month.