Tehran, Iran - Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Friday it was time to end the months-long Middle East war with the US because Tehran was in a position of strength over Washington.

Talks remain on hold, with both sides in the war started by the US and Israel in February locked in a stalemate.

Tehran is keeping the key Strait of Hormuz partially shut, and Washington is persisting with a naval counter-blockade of Iran.

"It is better that we bring the war to an end now as we are in a position of power and dignity," Pezeshkian said in a meeting with doctors.

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"The whole world acknowledges our victory and emphasizes that America has attacked our schools, hospitals, and infrastructure in violation of all regulations and is hated around the world."

His comments came after Iran's foreign ministry accused the US of "economic terrorism" and "crimes against humanity" after Washington said it would ramp up sanctions to heap pressure on Tehran.

"The perpetrators and instigators of these sanctions are deserving of trial and punishment for committing such heinous crimes," it said in a statement carried by state media.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday vowed Washington would "collapse" the Iranian regime with its threatened campaign nearly six months since the war began.

The comments underscored how the Trump administration is shifting to economic rather than military pressure on Tehran as the president's unpopular war drags on.

China also criticized Washington's economic plan, saying that US "sanctions and pressure" would not resolve the Middle East conflict.

Bessent said the plan to ramp up economic sanctions against Iran meant Washington was less likely to have to return to heavy military operations against the country. The US Treasury chief said he would give further details of the economic measures against Iran during a press conference on Monday.

Other senior Iranian officials also criticized the US sanctions plan.

"The so-called 'Economic D-Day' is a diversion from America's own crisis: unprecedented debt & surging interest costs," Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on X.