The Treasury Department announced a fresh 30-day extension of sanctions relief for Russian seaborne oil on Monday, reversing course from its earlier position that no further waivers would be granted. The move allows temporary purchases of Russian crude and petroleum products stranded on tankers without violating the severe sanctions imposed on Russian oil majors.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the new general license would "help stabilize the physical crude market and ensure oil reaches the most energy-vulnerable countries." The previous waiver had lapsed on Saturday.
The extension comes as Brent crude oil prices climbed above $112 per barrel, driven by tightening global supply concerns. The benchmark posted a 2.6 percent gain on the day as markets absorbed the news.
Bessent had told the Associated Press just last month that the administration had no plans to extend the waiver. His reversal, announced while attending a Group of Seven finance meeting in Paris, stressed that the measure would help redirect existing supplies to nations most dependent on Gulf oil while allowing them to compete with China for previously sanctioned crude.
The Trump administration imposed the original sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil last year as pressure to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine and cut Moscow's vital oil revenues. The current license mirrors the structure of the initial waiver issued in March following US-Israeli military strikes on Iran, which drove global oil prices sharply higher.
Democratic Senators Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts immediately condemned the extension as an "indefensible gift" to Vladimir Putin. In a statement, they argued that every additional dollar the Kremlin earns from the license directly finances Russia's war against Ukraine and the killing of Ukrainian civilians. The senators also noted that the sanctions relief has failed to drive down American gasoline prices or stabilize international energy markets.
Energy analysts offered a more nuanced assessment. Stephanie Connor, former policy director at the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, said the short-term waivers may benefit specific countries with heavy dependence on Gulf supplies, but would likely have minimal impact on US fuel prices. She noted that Britain and European nations maintain their own sanctions on Russian oil purchases.
Charles Lichfield, deputy director of the Atlantic Council's GeoEconomics Center, warned that the waivers would boost Russia's oil revenues at a moment when the country faces mounting economic headwinds and increasing Ukrainian strikes on refineries and infrastructure. He suggested this represented a missed opportunity to intensify sanctions pressure on Moscow.
The waiver applies only to crude and petroleum products loaded onto vessels as of April 17, capping the volume of potential sales and excluding more recently loaded Russian oil. This is the second time the Treasury has allowed a waiver to lapse and subsequently reinstated it.
Bessent indicated he would press G7 partners and other allies to enforce Iran sanctions more aggressively during his Paris meetings.
Author James Rodriguez: "The administration is hedging between energy market stability and war-time pressure on Putin, but it's hard to see how temporary oil relief helps either cause when the real question is whether it matters at all to American gas pump prices."
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