‘Brutal’ Economic Lesson for Iran as Regime Faces Collapsing Currency, U.S. Pressure Intensifies

Former U.S. special representative for Iran Brian Hook and former Army special ops intel analyst Brett Velicovich have warned that Iran is learning a “brutal” economic lesson, as the Trump administration leverages maximum pressure to force Tehran into a nuclear deal.

Speaking during a broadcast segment, Hook and Velicovich analyzed the latest United States peace proposal—described as a “one-pager”—and the regime’s motivations for reviewing it.

Brian Hook, former U.S. special representative for Iran, said President Donald Trump has given Iran “an opportunity to choose peace over war” and has built up “enough economic and military leverage against the regime” to secure a deal that ensures “no enrichment.”

“Unfortunately, the Iran nuclear deal gave them exactly that,” Hook said, referring to a path to a weapon. “President Trump was right to leave it in the first term.”

Hook argued that diplomacy only works “when the other side fears the alternative,” adding that “right now Iran fears the military alternative.”

Brett Velicovich, former Army special ops intel analyst and Fox News contributor, said Washington deserves credit for negotiating “from overwhelming leverage instead of weakness.”

“Iran is not suddenly talking about a deal because the regime had a moral awakening,” Velicovich said. “They are negotiating because we forced it, because their economy is under pressure, their oil exports are disrupted, their currency’s battered, and they know the United States is serious.”

Velicovich described Iran’s leadership as learning “a very brutal economic lesson in real time,” with a collapsing currency, shrinking export capability, and rising inflation. “The money is drying up,” he said.

Both analysts stressed the need for a deadline on negotiations. The host noted that President Trump had said there is “no deadline” on the one-pager, a move Velicovich called “the wrong way to go.”

Velicovich also called for the U.S. to control the Strait of Hormuz. “Full stop, end of sentence. Not negotiation,” he said.

Hook expressed support for “Project Freedom,” a proposed effort to keep the international waterway open, and for the naval blockade, which he said is “imposing real economic costs on the Iranian regime.”

Comparing the situation to the Reagan administration’s pressure on the Soviet Union, Hook said: “The Iranian economy is on an economic precipice.” He noted that five million people took to the streets months ago, “and the conditions now are worse than they were in January.”

Velicovich warned that if the U.S. “lets up now,” it would hand the Iranian regime “survival” and allow it to rearm. “This may be the best opportunity we’ve had to fundamentally change it,” he said. “The cost of backing down is generational.”

He added that China, Russia, and “every hostile regime” are watching whether the U.S. can enforce red lines “economically without immediately resulting in massive war.”