Qalibaf to Washington: Time to Repay Near-Zero Interest Loans

By Staff, Agencies

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf responded to recent remarks by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who has claimed Iran’s economy would “collapse within the next two weeks,” by pointing to economic pressures facing the United States, itself.

In a post on X on Wednesday, the top legislator outlined a formula representing an analytical model of the pressures facing the US economy, including the strain resulting from Iran’s closure of the strategic Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for American-“Israeli” aggression.

The formula focused on the US government’s borrowing costs and the rising yields on US Treasury securities.

It showed that the US government had previously borrowed heavily when interest rates were close to zero. As those loans come due, the formula pointed out, the government is being required to borrow again at substantially higher interest rates in order to repay existing debt.

At the same time, according to Qalibaf, the capacity and willingness of foreign buyers to purchase US government bonds are declining.

The resulting pressure, he said, has contributed to rising Treasury yields.

The top negotiator then linked these financial pressures to Iran’s role in the Strait of Hormuz and the resulting energy-price environment.

He argued through the formula that Iran’s role in keeping the strait closed, sustaining high energy prices, and contributing to higher US Treasury yields was placing additional pressure on the US Treasury Department and aggravating the difficulties facing Bessent.

Qalibaf’s depiction of the situation governing the US economy and the role played by Iran’s retaliation in Washington’s economic woes, came amid the Islamic Republic’s insistence that issues involving Iran, including shipping through strait and related global energy movement, were to be resolved only through respect for the rights of the Iranian people.