Washington says it is talking to Iran while cracking down on financial channels

Washington: President Donald Trump has said the United States remains in contact with Iran, even as his administration escalates financial pressure on Tehran by sanctioning eight Canadian money-services firms accused of helping Iranian interests move funds through digital assets.

Speaking to reporters before departing the White House, Trump said: “We’re talking to Iran. We have been.”

He portrayed the US position as strong, claiming that Washington had “beaten Iran” and that the Strait of Hormuz was opening. Asked what he would say to Tehran, the president suggested that diplomatic engagement was continuing alongside his administration’s pressure campaign.

Trump’s comments came hours after the Treasury Department announced sanctions on eight Canada-based businesses under Operation Economic Outcast, an initiative targeting alleged Iranian sanctions evasion. The Treasury said the firms were suspected of converting Iranian rials and other currencies into cryptocurrencies to support international transactions involving Iran.

According to the department, several of the companies had dealings with sanctioned Iranian crypto exchanges or digital-asset addresses connected to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The action was carried out with Canada’s financial intelligence unit, FINTRAC, along with the US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Treasury said the designations would freeze property within US jurisdiction and generally bar US individuals and companies from transacting with the named businesses unless specifically authorised. The penalties are civil sanctions, not criminal convictions.

The announcement did not say whether the sanctions were linked to any broader negotiation with Iran, nor did it connect the measures directly to the contacts Trump described.

State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said the United States would keep pursuing revenue streams it believes finance Iran’s weapons programmes and regional proxies. He described the action as part of US-Canadian cooperation to safeguard the North American financial system.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the department would target Iran’s financial channels wherever they operate.

Treasury further alleged that some of the designated firms had handled proceeds connected to Ryan Wedding, a Canadian former Olympic snowboarder. The allegations were included in the official designation announcement; the reviewed material did not include responses from the companies.

(Inputs from IANS)