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U.S. unveils new Iran sanctions a day after Trump puts the country “on notice”

The Trump administration announced a new wave of sanctions against Iran, a day after the president tweeted that the country has officially been “put on notice” for conducting a ballistic missile test on Sunday.

The sanctions, coming via the Treasury Department, are similar to the measures that existed under former President Obama. The sanctions come in retaliation for the missile test and in response to an attack by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen against a Saudi ship.

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Trump seemed intent on sending Iran a message, at least via Twitter.

National Security Adviser Michael Flynn also said the US was “officially putting Iran on notice,” though it’s not clear if that will translates into any specific, official policies.

Trump refused to rule out going a step further, even taking actual military action against Iran, saying on Thursday that “nothing’s off the table.”

But Iran didn’t seem too concerned with the added pressure. The foreign minister, Javad Zarif said on Twitter Friday that Iran is “unmoved” by the U.S. sanctions.

“We’ll never initiate war,” Zarif added. “But we can only rely on our own means of defense.”