The Iranian Foreign Ministry has issued a sharp rebuke of the latest round of sanctions proposed by the United States. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei stated that the sanctions represent an attempt by Washington to exert extraterritorial control over independent UN member states, effectively forcing foreign banks, businesses, and airports to comply with US policy.

Baghaei described the move as a return to "full-scale classic colonialism" and argued that the sanctions constitute a "declaration of war" on all nations. According to reports from the Fars news agency, Iran maintains that these measures go beyond a bilateral economic dispute, suggesting that the US is attempting to impose its domestic legal reach globally. The Iranian government contends that no single nation has the legal authority to dictate the economic activities of other sovereign states or their private enterprises.

While both outlets report on the Iranian government's strong rhetoric, they differ in how they characterize the core of the Iranian message. Al Jazeera focuses on the "colonialist" framing of the sanctions, while Middle East Eye emphasizes the "declaration of war" terminology. Neither report includes a response or counter-statement from the United States government regarding the specific legal or diplomatic justifications for these new sanctions.