BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 29. Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has responded to US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s claims about Washington’s economic pressure campaign against Tehran.
Bessent said the United States had helped guide 130 million barrels of oil through the region over the past 14 days and argued that Washington’s blockade and its “Operation Economic Outcast” campaign would “crush” Iran’s economy.
Responding on X, Ghalibaf challenged Bessent’s assessment and pointed instead to what he described as the “real 130s” associated with the conflict.
The Iranian parliament speaker cited what he claimed were more than $130 billion in war costs.
Ghalibaf also claimed that US market-making firm Jane Street Capital had lost more than $130 million while shorting oil during a single futures roll.
His reference to Jane Street appears to relate to reports alleging that the trading company was involved in efforts to influence oil markets during the energy crisis.
Ghalibaf also attached a screenshot of a column by economist Paul Krugman titled “Scott Bessent Fails to Gaslight the Market”.
The column argues that Bessent’s attempts to influence long-term US borrowing costs had failed, pointing to the rebound in 30-year Treasury yields after an initial decline.
Ghalibaf used the claims to challenge Washington’s portrayal of the effectiveness and economic consequences of its pressure campaign against Iran. The specific claims regarding war costs and Jane Street’s trading losses were presented by Ghalibaf and were not independently substantiated in the information provided.
