HOW RUSSIA, CHINA AND IRAN COULD EACH PUT THE SCREWS TO THE US ECONOMY

Vince Dhimos answered a question at Quora.
 
Q: WHAT PUNISHMENTS SHOULD THE US IMPOSE ON NATIONS THAT ASSIST IRAN, SUCH AS RUSSIA OR CHINA?
 
https://www.quora.com/What-punishments-should-the-US-impose-on-nations-that-assist-Iran-such-as-Russia-or-China/answer/Vince-Dhimos
 
The US has killed millions of innocent civilians with aerial bombs and missiles, and is currently occupying Iraq and Syria against the will of the people of those countries. It has also illegally killed several high-ranking military officials in Iraq and has admitted that it intends to steal Syrian oil. It is therefore in fact a war criminal and has no authority whatsoever to declare other countries as terrorists or criminals. Once the US loses enough of its authority in the eyes of the world, offended countries may, and probably will, impose sanctions and embargoes on it and sue it in international courts to recover the enormous amounts of money lost by its irresponsible actions.
 
The bullies in Washington who concoct the outrageous claims against Iran, China and Russia don’t seem to understand that these countries have enormous power over the US. Iran, for its part, could easily stop vital shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, causing oil prices to spiral upward. As for China, if it chose to ditch its holdings in Treasuries, it could wreak havoc in US finances, causing a sharp drop in the value of the dollar. Further, if Russia chose to do so, it could start increasing the amounts of oil it extracts and sells on the world market. If this happened, the US shale oil business would go bankrupt in very short order, and the US would lose one of its main sources of income (although it must be said that the shale oil and gas business in the US has been losing money anyway since the outset).
 
If Putin were minded to do so, he could remind US officials of this possibility. Of course Putin realizes that the US is on the verge of financial collapse, particularly with the recent repo market crisis (which few Westerners know about). I think this knowledge, plus the formidable Russian arsenal, is the reason for Putin’s sang-froid regarding the US. He knows it is just a matter of time before the game is over.