The US has loosened sanctions on other countries buying Russian oil and petroleum already loaded on vessels at sea to curb the economic impact of the US-Israel war with Iran.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the temporary waiver was aimed at promoting “stability in global energy markets”. The “short-term measure” would “not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government”, he cautioned.
Russia said it had about 100 million barrels of oil currently in transit.
Attacks on ships and energy infrastructure in the Gulf, as well as the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, have rocked global energy markets.
Oil prices climbed above $100 a barrel again on Thursday, while stock markets fell after three more cargo vessels were hit in the Gulf and Iran’s new supreme leader vowed to keep blocking the major waterway.
Around a fifth of the world’s oil usually passes through the Strait of Hormuz. Oil tankers stranded in the gulf, unable to traverse the narrow channel between Iran and Oman, has led to a growing supply crisis.
Bessent said the temporary waiver would last until April 11 and applied only to “permit countries”.
“The temporary increase in oil prices is a short-term and temporary disruption that will result in a massive benefit to our nation and economy in the long-term,” Bessent said.
The move comes after Washington announced it would be releasing 172 million barrels of oil from its strategic petroleum reserve on Wednesday.
Kirill Dmitriev, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s economic envoy, said the US was “effectively acknowledging the obvious: without Russian oil, the global energy market cannot remain stable”.
He added: “Amid the growing energy crisis, further easing of restrictions on Russian energy sources appears increasingly inevitable.”
But Bill Browder, a former Moscow-based financier who led a campaign to impose sanctions on top Russian officials accused of corruption, told the BBC that Trump’s move was “a terrible decision that will enrich Putin and prolong the war in Ukraine”. (BBC)
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