US extends Russian oil sanctions waiver as Iran war squeezes supply
The waiver temporarily lifts sanctions on Russian oil for 30 days.
WASHINGTON — The US Treasury Department has extended a sanctions waiver on Russian oil shipments amid supply shortages caused by Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a post on X Monday that his department was issuing a temporary 30-day so-called general license “to provide the most vulnerable nations with the ability to temporarily access Russian oil currently stranded at sea.”
“This general license will help stabilize the physical crude market and ensure oil reaches the most energy-vulnerable countries,” Bessent said.
The general license applies only to Russian oil loaded onto tankers that are currently at sea. The Trump administration approved a 30-day waiver temporarily lifting the sanctions in March, before renewing it in April.
European allies as well as congressional Democrats have been critical of the waivers, arguing they undermine Western efforts to squeeze Russia’s wartime revenue. In a letter to the Treasury Department Friday, Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) urged the Treasury Department not to reissue the waiver, which they warned was “lining [Vladimir] Putin’s coffers."
“With the average price of gas above $4.50 a gallon, there is no evidence that this license is reducing costs for American families burdened by the president’s conflict in the Middle East,” the senators wrote.
The latest extension comes as President Donald Trump threatened to restart military operations as negotiations with Iran stall over reopening the Strait of Hormuz and curbing the country’s nuclear program. Trump said in a Truth Social post on Sunday that Iran “better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them.”
Trump is expected to convene his national security team in the Situation Room on Tuesday to discuss military options, according to Axios.
This developing story has been updated.
