Iran has hit back at Washington’s latest sanctions rhetoric, accusing the United States of becoming so reliant on economic pressure that sanctions have replaced diplomacy as its default foreign-policy tool.

In a sharply worded statement, Iran’s Foreign Ministry dismissed U.S. claims that sanctions are “suffocating” the Iranian economy.

“The US Secretary of the Treasury has boasted of “suffocating” Iran through economic sanctions. Beyond its sheer pathos, the claim is a stark testament to America’s compulsive addiction to sanctions. Whenever Washington proves itself incapable of pursuing diplomacy, it retreats into sanctions; and whenever those sanctions fail to produce results, it simply increases the dose. This is no longer ‘policy’—it is ‘habit’; and more dangerously still, it is an addiction that has displaced thought itself. Iran has demonstrated over decades that it will not be strangled by these exhausted refrains. The real risk is that American politicians, clinging to this bad habit, will instead strangle their own remaining chances of a less humiliating exit from a crisis of their own making,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said on X.

On August 7, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in an interview that the United States had succeeded in “suffocating” Iran. Bessent claimed that food inflation in Iran was running at “150–180%,” while the country was struggling to pay its military personnel.

A new bill on the management of the Strait of Hormuz will be submitted to the Iranian parliament in less than two weeks, Abolfazl Zohrevand, a member of the parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, told Russia’s TASS news agency.

“I think that in less than two weeks, after receiving all expert opinions, this draft will be fully ready for presentation at a plenary session [of parliament],” he said.

The lawmaker noted that the bill is currently on the agenda of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission and is undergoing expert review.

According to Zohrevand, the new bill is being drafted with a long-term perspective to prevent aggression against Iran and consolidate Tehran’s position in the Persian Gulf region.

“The fact is that we are drafting this bill for good, that is, with a long-term perspective in mind. The point is that we are striving to prevent a repeat of events similar to those orchestrated by the US and Israel against us and the entire region, which created this instability. It is about consolidating our positions regarding sovereignty, property rights, and control over this strait,” TASS quoted the Iranian legislator as saying.

The lawmaker also stated that without the adoption of this law and a clear definition of its scope, the region may once again witness “ambitions and geopolitical games on the part of countries that do not have positive intentions toward the entire region, including Iran.”

On August 9, the Iranian state broadcaster reported that the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission had approved a new bill on the management of the Strait of Hormuz.

President Donald Trump has said that the U.S. Navy has swept the Strait of Hormuz clear of mines and now holds “100%” control of the waterway, with reparations emerging as the latest flashpoint between Washington and Tehran, CNBC reported. 

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said the U.S. Navy now has full control of the waterway. “It’s open now,” he said, adding that the U.S. was “the only one that has control of the Strait of Hormuz right now.”

He described the U.S. posture as a “steel wall” and said sporadic Iranian mine-laying hasn’t changed that. “They will, on occasion, drop a mine, and we find the mine,” he said. The U.S. has maintained a naval blockade of Iranian ports since mid-April.

Iranian officials have insisted that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until the U.S. agrees to its demands including lifting their naval blockade, while its discussions with Oman over a shipping arrangement would not lead to the waterway being fully reopened.

In an attempt at turning the tables on Iran, Trump in a Truth Social post said Tehran’s demand for war-damage reimbursements gave him “an interesting idea” — that Iran should instead compensate the U.S. for the people killed or wounded in roadside bombings and other attacks linked to Iran, as well as Iranian protestors that he said have been killed over the past 50 years by the country’s regime.

Trump’s reparations demand has introduced a new sticking point after Iran laid out its own conditions for reopening the strait on Saturday, a vital waterway that carried roughly a fifth of the world’s oil before the war.

Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said Saturday the strait won’t reopen until Washington lifts its naval blockade and sanctions, withdraws American forces from the region, pays war reparations and releases frozen Iranian assets. The council also called for an end to U.S. attacks on Iran’s regional allies.

Trump has signaled that he was prepared to let the mounting economic distress take its toll on Iran rather than launch further military strikes.

Iran’s foreign ministry on Tuesday pushed back on the economic front. The spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei responded to the U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s claims that U.S. sanctions were “suffocating” Iran.

He said that Washington opts for sanctions whenever diplomacy fails and escalates them when they don’t work — a pattern he said has become less a “policy” than a “compulsive addiction.”

The Board of the Central Bank of the Republic of Armenia has adopted a decision introducing changes to the regulatory framework governing the issuance and use of electronic money, with the aim of fostering a more efficient and competitive market environment.

The Central Bank said in a press release that, under the amendments, the mandatory requirement to have a bank account or payment card in order to open an electronic money account (wallet) has been removed.

At the same time, electronic money accounts can now be funded and redeemed not only through non-cash methods but also in cash.

The Central Bank said that, under the new approach, customer identification will be carried out in accordance with the customer due diligence procedures established by applicable legislation, while ensuring full compliance with the requirements of the Law on Combating Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing.

According to the Central Bank, the new regulations significantly simplify the use of electronic money for customers, making it faster and more convenient, particularly for individuals who do not use bank accounts or payment cards.

“For payment and settlement organizations, the changes create a more competitive and level playing field. They will be able to expand the range of services they offer and reduce their operational dependence on banking infrastructure,” the Central Bank said.

The proposed changes are aimed at:

expanding access to electronic money; 

creating equal competitive conditions for financial organizations; 

promoting the development of innovative payment solutions.

The changes are expected to increase the adoption of electronic money, enhance competition in the market, and contribute to the creation of a more efficient and inclusive payment environment.

Armenia’s Acting Deputy Foreign Minister Vahan Kostanyan met with Khush Choksy, Senior Vice President for International Member Relations and Senior Vice President for the Middle East, Türkiye and Central Asia at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Kostanyan and Choksy discussed prospects for “institutionalizing relations in trade and economic cooperation, as well as in the fields of agriculture, energy, and information technology,” the Foreign Ministry said in a press release.

The sides emphasized the progress achieved in Armenia-U.S. bilateral relations in recent years and the importance of implementing high-level agreements.

On the occasion of the first anniversary of the White House Peace Summit, a meeting was held in Washington between Vahan Kostanyan, Acting Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, Elnur Mammadov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and Allison Hooker, U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia said in a statement.

Vahan Kostanyan highly appreciated the personal contribution of the President of the United States of America Donald Trump both to the convening of last year’s Peace Summit and to advancing the institutionalization of peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the past year. 

During the meeting, the participants exchanged views on the positive developments achieved to date, regional infrastructure projects and confidence-building measures.

The importance of addressing the existing humanitarian issues was also emphasized.

The APRI Armenia analytical center organized a press conference entitled “One Year After the Washington Summit: What Do We Have Today and What Should We Expect?” to summarize the developments that have taken place in the Armenian-Azerbaijani and Armenian-Türkiye normalization processes, as well as in Armenian-American relations, following the Washington Summit, and their impact on regional stability and prosperity.

Benjamin Poghosyan, Senior Research Fellow at the APRI Armenia analytical center, singled out two factors in assessing the impact of the documents adopted on August 8, 2025.

“The first factor has a geopolitical dimension, the main point of which is the significant reduction in the likelihood of a possible new escalation between Armenia and Azerbaijan, more specifically, the likelihood of military aggression by Azerbaijan against Armenia. We all remember how tense the situation was, particularly in the first months of 2025, especially after the text of the peace agreement had been agreed upon, when Azerbaijan was spreading false reports almost every day about ceasefire violations by Armenia, and Azerbaijani media, including outlets linked to state institutions, were stating that Azerbaijan had the right to resort to retaliatory actions. After August 8, 2025, that threat decreased significantly and, as of now, is almost close to zero and, most likely, will remain so until the end of President Trump’s term in office,” Poghosyan said.

He highlighted that the documents also significantly advanced bilateral Armenian-American relations. In 2025, three memoranda of understanding were signed in various fields, including cooperation in digital technologies and artificial intelligence, while in May 2026, an agreement on comprehensive bilateral strategic cooperation was signed, replacing the document signed one year earlier, at the beginning of January.

“We now see that the aforementioned memoranda are not only on paper but are also producing certain results. Just three days ago, the opening of the first major artificial intelligence facility took place in Armenia, which was directly facilitated by the memoranda signed previously,” Poghosyan said, referring to the opening of the Firebird AI data center.

Sergey Melkonyan, a Research Fellow at the APRI Armenia analytical center, in turn, said that they had presented a relevant report on the TRIPP project, focusing on its geopolitical and economic components.

“We came to the conclusion that TRIPP is primarily a geopolitical project rather than an economic one. We also calculated how much money Armenia could earn if there were comprehensive unblocking in the South Caucasus, and what would change in purely financial terms if only TRIPP were implemented. In the latter case, Armenia’s profit would be approximately $23 million annually, which is not a large amount. Whereas if there were comprehensive unblocking, the profit could reach up to $388 million annually,” Melkonyan said.

He added that for Armenia, access to the outside world, including the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea, is extremely important, especially when diversification is being discussed.

“In that case, all railway connections should be opened. According to the Washington document, if TRIPP is implemented, all routes must necessarily be operational for this to happen. In this regard, we still do not see serious political decisions. If all sides are interested in the prospect of peace, they should focus not only on TRIPP. There is also a third component, according to which a scenario is possible in which, in the context of unblocking, only TRIPP is implemented while the other routes are not opened, or, if they are opened, it is possible to close them unilaterally. In the case of TRIPP, there is no such option, and therefore a de facto new format of blockade of Armenia could be legitimized, in which only TRIPP operates while the other routes remain closed,” Melkonyan noted.

Addressing the existing challenges, Poghosyan said that Azerbaijan is delaying the signing of the peace agreement in order to prevent the normalization of Armenian-Türkiye relations, because messages are continuously being sent from Azerbaijan to Türkiye according to which the full normalization of Armenian-Türkiye relations, including the opening of the land border and the launch of the railway, can take place exclusively after the signing of the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace agreement.

“At APRI Armenia, we call this process a ‘vicious circle,’ and this term has already begun to be used in Azerbaijani and Türkiye expert circles. On the one hand, Azerbaijan is doing everything to avoid signing the peace agreement; on the other hand, it is doing everything to prevent the normalization of Armenian-Türkiye relations without the signing of the peace agreement. For now, it is impossible to speak of institutionalized peace as long as the peace agreement has not been signed. External engagement is necessary to break the ‘vicious circle.’ There is a window of opportunity that the United States can use by becoming more actively involved in regional processes in order to break that ‘vicious circle.’ The United States should take steps so that the normalization of Armenian-Türkiye relations becomes an integral part of US-Türkiye relations,” Poghosyan noted.

Speaking about the problematic issue related to the Russian concession management of the Armenian railways, Poghosyan emphasized that, in order to determine whether this concession is an obstacle to unblocking, there must first be clear guarantees that the Armenia-Türkiye and Armenia-Nakhchivan borders will be opened.

“As long as those decisions do not exist, it is difficult to make clear assertions. At least in the presence of decisions concerning the opening of the borders, it would be possible to speak of the Russian concession potentially being an obstacle for Armenia on its path to becoming a component of the Middle Corridor. The discussions currently are more political than practical in nature,” Poghosyan said.

The researchers of the APRI Armenia analytical center argued that, in the event of comprehensive unblocking in the South Caucasus, the railway connecting Armenia to Iran through the territory of Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan would also be put into operation, in which case Armenia would also become a component of the North-South transit corridor; for this, hostilities in Iran would also need to cease.

Moscow has once again insisted that Armenia should decide whether to hold a referendum on remaining part of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) or pursuing EU membership, despite Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan making clear as recently as last week that no such agenda exists.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin told the TASS news agency that Moscow expects Armenia to make a decision regarding the proposed referendum by December this year, when potential actions against Armenia will be discussed at an EAEU summit.

“It is obvious that if the call for a referendum is ignored by that time, the leaders will take this fact into consideration when deciding on further joint steps,” Galuzin said.

“Moreover, it has already been indicated that the issue will be discussed at the December meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council, when the leaders of the member states are expected to receive a report on the possible consequences of suspending the provisions of the EAEU treaty with regard to Armenia,” Galuzin said.

Amid Yerevan’s deepening ties with the EU, as well as the parliament’s adoption of a law calling on the government to start the process of EU integration, Armenia’s fellow EAEU members, including Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, announced earlier this year that Yerevan should hold a referendum on the matter to clarify its stance, arguing that simultaneous membership in both unions is incompatible. However, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan rejected the proposal, insisting that putting a theoretical matter to a referendum is not possible at this stage, as Yerevan has not even officially applied for EU membership.

“A referendum, of course, will take place, but only after Armenia officially applies for EU membership, and institutional work must be carried out in that direction. Holding a referendum today is impossible because the subject of such a referendum does not exist,” Pashinyan said last week.

Yerevan will host the Global Conference on Medical Tourism, “Travel for Care, Stay for Healing: When Patients Become Guests,” in September, the Tourism Committee has announced.

Expected to take place on September 21–23, 2026, the event is organized by the Tourism Committee of Armenia in collaboration with the United Nations World Tourism Organization.

“The Conference will bring together leaders from healthcare, tourism, international organizations, insurance, investment, and the private sector to explore trends, share best practices, and strengthen cooperation in medical tourism,” the Tourism Committee said in a press release.

More information on the programme, speakers, and registration will be announced soon.

Armenia’s ruling Civil Contract parliamentary faction has nominated lawmaker Arusyak Julhakyan as a candidate for chair of the Parliamentary Committee on State and Legal Affairs.

The parliament is debating the Civil Contract MP’s candidacy in a plenary session ahead of a confirmation vote.