Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Friday that the United States is readying its most significant wave of airstrikes against Iran to date. Speaking on the Fox Business program “Kudlow,” Bessent confirmed that the upcoming operation is designed to cripple the Iranian military’s ability to manufacture and deploy long-range weapons.
This escalation follows the initiation of Operation Epic Fury, which President Donald Trump announced last Saturday. That mission, conducted in coordination with Israel’s Operation Lion’s Roar, sparked a week of back-and-forth hostilities.
Iran has since retaliated with a series of drone and missile strikes directed at American and Israeli military positions in the region.
According to Bessent, the next phase of the campaign focuses on the source of those attacks. He noted that the U.S. will specifically target missile launchers and the industrial factories responsible for building them.
Bessent echoed statements from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and General Caine, telling host Larry Kudlow that the objective is to “substantially degrade” Iranian military infrastructure in a single, massive push.
The Treasury Secretary also addressed the economic fallout of the conflict, claiming the Trump administration had already prepared for Iran’s attempts to disrupt global markets.
He dismissed concerns that the fighting would lead to lasting financial instability, stating that the administration has already factored market volatility into its strategic “calculus.”
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth pushed back against reports suggesting that the U.S. is running low on missile interceptors.
Despite a Bloomberg report indicating that Tehran might be trying to deplete American air defenses through sustained attrition, Hegseth insisted that Iran cannot outlast the United States in a prolonged military engagement. For now, the administration maintains that the conflict is proceeding exactly as planned.
READ: Combat Veterans Scramble To Evacuate Stranded Americans Across 5 Middle Eastern Nations
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox
