US sanctions on Iranian oil: As tensions in West Asia threaten global energy supplies, the Trump administration has allowed limited sale of Iranian oil stranded at sea. This was the third time the United States has temporarily waived sanctions in about two weeks.
US issues 30-day waiver for Iranian oil sales
The US has issued a 30-day sanctions waiver for the purchase of Iranian oil at sea to ease energy supply pressures since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was quoted as saying by Reuters.
Earlier, the US had eased sanctions on Russian oil and on Friday issued a general licence allowing the sale of Iranian crude oil and petroleum products loaded on vessels as of March 20 to April 19, according to the license posted to the Treasury Department’s website as cited by Reuters.
What Bessent said?
“By temporarily unlocking this existing supply for the world, the United States will quickly bring approximately 140 million barrels of oil to global markets, expanding the amount of worldwide energy and helping to relieve the temporary pressures on supply caused by Iran,” Bessent said in a statement on X.
“In essence, we will be using the Iranian barrels against Tehran to keep the price down as we continue Operation Epic Fury,” Bessent said.
US granted temporary window for Russian oil sales
The US on March 19 issued a new general license that replaces an earlier waiver that authorised the sale of Russian-origin crude oil and petroleum products loaded on tankers as of March 12, the US Treasury Department said in a statement.
The authorisation covers the delivery and sale of Russian crude oil loaded onto tankers as of March 12, 2026, under a temporary waiver framework. The measure replaces an earlier 30-day waiver issued the same day.
While the core terms remain largely unchanged, the updated license introduces explicit exclusions for transactions involving Cuba and North Korea, tightening compliance conditions.
Earlier, the US issued a second authorisation letting countries buy more Russian oil that’s stuck on tankers due to sanctions, part of the White House’s push to prevent prices from surging.
The temporary move, which widens a waiver given to India last week, only applies to oil already in transit and, as such, won’t provide significant financial support for the Russian government, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrote in a social media post, according to a report by Bloomberg.
Historic disruption
According to a Bloomberg report, the International Energy Agency has estimated that Middle East producers will cut their collective output by close to 250 million barrels this month, while shipments through Hormuz will decline by over 600 million barrels of crude and fuels.
Up to roughly one-third of the supply could, in theory, be rerouted through pipelines that avoid the affected waterway.
The US government has also taken multiple steps to cushion the impact of the disruption, which the International Energy Agency described as the largest supply shock in oil market history.
These measures include releasing 172 million barrels from the strategic petroleum reserve and considering additional options such as intervening in futures markets and waiving a century-old law requiring US-flagged ships to transport goods between domestic ports, according to a report by Bloomberg.
