US secondary sanctions targeting civilian airlines are a legitimate tool of pressure

The diplomacy lens matters because this was not only a military pause. It was also a negotiated pause assembled through intermediaries, public statements, and a still-uncertain next phase.

The U.S. Treasury sanctioned 36 targets connected to Iran's aviation sector, including 27 Iranian airlines and additional companies, intermediaries and aviation-service providers based in Turkey, the UAE, Malaysia and Kazakhstan. Washington alleges that Iranian aviation networks transport weapons, IRGC personnel and illicit cargo and obtain controlled aircraft and technology through foreign companies. The United States also suspended three aviation-related authorisations, including provisions covering overflights and certain foreign operations of U.S.-origin aircraft into Iran, as part of an effort to isolate the entire Iranian aviation sector, including Mahan Air.