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The United States may in the future temporarily lift sanctions on Russian-origin oil transported by tankers, Bloomberg reports.
According to the agency, the administration of President Donald Trump recently chose not to extend a license that previously allowed certain countries to continue purchasing Russian oil under a temporary exemption.
However, Bloomberg notes that, as in earlier cases, lobbying from Asian allies of the United States and rising tensions in global oil markets could prompt Washington to issue a new waiver allowing limited purchases of sanctioned Russian crude at a later stage.
Previously, in March, the US Treasury Department temporarily eased restrictions on Russian oil shipments that had already been loaded, effectively softening enforcement of sanctions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has argued that there are currently no grounds to weaken sanctions pressure on Russia, warning that it would only encourage further aggression.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent later stated in April that Washington would not continue sanctions exemptions for Russian oil. However, the policy position shifted again shortly afterward, when the Treasury issued a new temporary license.
By the end of April, Bessent also said the US was moving to fully restrict Russian and Iranian oil exports, emphasizing that Washington would no longer make concessions aimed at stabilizing global energy prices at the expense of pressure on adversaries.
