2:38 p.m. ET, June 24, 2019
What the new US sanctions really mean for Iran
US President Donald Trump leaves after announcing his decision about the nuclear deal with Iran during a speech from the Diplomatic Reception Room at the White House in Washington, DC, May 8, 2018.
SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images
President Trump's new sanctions will deny Iranian officials access to "billions of dollars" of financial assets, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said.
The sanctions, imposed on Monday, will apply to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his office.
Why this matters: This means that Mnuchin has the authority to impose sanctions on officials appointed by Khamenei and anyone who supports his office.
So far, the Trump administration said the sanctions will target senior commanders of the navy, aerospace, and ground forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) — people who the Department of the Treasury said had a direct role in the tanker attacks in the Gulf of Oman, and the shooting down of a US drone.
These sanctions would deny officials access to the United States financial system and any assets in the US — blocking Iranian leadership from using many resources and making it harder for Khamenei to fund parts of the government.
In a statement, the White House said the sanctions are in response to "a series of provocative actions in the recent weeks, leading up to the attack on a United States drone operating over international waters."
According to the Trump administration, the sanctions are intended to push Iran to the negotiating table as well as to "send a clear message to the Iranian regime that it must end its malign behavior."
Here's more about the relationship between Trump and Iran's supreme leader: