US suspends sanctions on Russian oil sales amid Iran war [View all]

Source: The Guardian

The US temporarily suspended sanctions on the sale of Russian oil on Thursday, issuing a Treasury Department license to allow the sale of Russian crude oil and petroleum products loaded on vessels until 11 April, according to a letter posted online by the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, which oversees sanctions.

The sale of Russian oil has been sanctioned by the US in retaliation for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, cast the windfall for Russia as one of a series of steps taken by Donald Trump “to promote stability in global energy markets and working to keep prices low as we address the threat and instability posed by the terrorist Iranian regime”.

The new license, which covers oil and petroleum products loaded on vessels as of 12 March, comes a day after the US announced it would release 172m barrels of oil from its strategic petroleum reserve in an effort to keep oil prices from further spiking after Iran closed the strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the globe’s oil supply normally passes.

Read more: www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/mar/12/iran-war-live-updates-oil-trump-middle-east-crisis-israel-lebanon-iraq-latest-news