Mohsen Rezaei, Iran's national security adviser, reportedly warned that the country's economic crisis has entered one of its most challenging periods as the rial falls under intensifying sanctions pressure.

Rezaei delivered the warning during a government meeting on Oct. 3, attended by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and senior ministers, according to The New York Times.

The security adviser described the circumstances as among the "most difficult periods the country has faced." Iran's security council pledged to provide available support, the NYT reported, citing Iran's state news agency IRNA.

The worsening conditions have intensified an already existing cost-of-living crisis that fueled nationwide protests last December.

Meanwhile, Pezeshkian took to X to acknowledge the "intensified" economic pressure and said the government "has adopted a new arrangement to manage the special conditions."

Rial Slides as Blockade Squeezes Imports

The rial has weakened sharply since the U.S. and Israel launched their war against Iran in February. Its decline has accelerated in recent weeks as sanctions and a naval blockade have increased import costs.

Iran's central bank has announced up to $2 billion in support for the rial, which has lost more than half its value over the past year amid U.S. sanctions and a naval blockade, Reuters reported on Saturday.

The USD rose to about 2.723 million rials on Sunday, hitting a record low Iran International reported, while Mehdi Darabi, a central bank official, blamed the currency's decline partly on U.S. predictions of an economic collapse and called the latest drop temporary.

Iran's Oil Exports Face Growing Pressure

The economic pressure has increasingly focused on Iran's oil exports, a crucial source of government revenue. In the last week of September, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Iran's remaining oil shipments to China could end within two weeks because of the U.S. port blockade. He said approximately 15 million barrels remained for delivery, potentially leaving Iran with little to trade.

The warning came as the U.S. naval blockade disrupted the country's oil movement and narrowed its access to international commerce. The U.S. has also restricted most civilian air travel between Iran and the rest of the world, further isolating the country economically.

On Friday, Bessent said Iran loaded "ZERO crude oil onto tankers in September," describing the Trump administration's restrictions as cutting off the regime's most critical revenue source.

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