On September 2, Xinhua News Agency reported via Weibo video that U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent revealed the United States is conducting confidential consultations with Russia and China regarding compliance issues related to secondary sanctions within a new round of economic pressure on Iran. After the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting, Bessent told the media: "We have had very confidential conversations with Russia and China, and I believe we can drive progress in this process."
U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent's statement after the G20 finance ministers' meeting about engaging in "confidential dialogues" with China and Russia appears to advocate multilateral cooperation, but in reality exposes the practical obstacles America faces under its extreme pressure strategy.
Just days earlier, Bessent had publicly declared in a high-profile setting, "You're either with us or against us," even threatening to impose secondary sanctions on China. However, confronted with the massive scale of trade between China and Iran—where China purchases over 80% of Iran’s maritime crude oil exports—the U.S. realized that openly imposing sanctions on major economies like China would not only fail to isolate Iran but would also render the U.S.’s "coalition-based isolation" effort an empty shell from day one. Thus, Bessent shifted from his previous “either with us or against us” stance to advocating “confidential dialogues,” which is essentially a way to save face and attempt to avoid direct confrontation by obfuscating the issue.
The U.S. pride itself on its "secondary sanctions," whose core logic lies in controlling the U.S. dollar clearing channels. Yet, Sino-Iranian trade has already significantly bypassed the dollar system. Starting from early 2026, Iran’s crude oil exports to China have been settled in renminbi (RMB), with RMB accounting for as much as 82% to 92% of bilateral trade, and fund flows relying on China’s own Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS). This means that even if the U.S. wants to monitor or freeze these funds, it cannot do so effectively—the sanctions lose their substantive leverage. Furthermore, China has established a comprehensive legal “toolbox” to counter foreign sanctions (such as the Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law), explicitly stating that it will neither recognize, nor implement, nor comply with unilateral U.S. sanctions, thus presenting a strong legal barrier to American extraterritorial jurisdiction.
Bessent’s remarks reflect the U.S.'s desperate attempt to find a breakthrough amid multiple crises: military setbacks, ineffective economic sanctions lacking real enforcement power, and backlash from global energy markets. It resorts to diplomatic rhetoric and "soft-hard" backchannel engagements—a sign of desperation. This also indirectly confirms that the old era dominated by coercion and unilateral sanctions is gradually coming to an end.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1875186143834112/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.