The administration of Donald Trump has announced a temporary 30-day waiver allowing countries to purchase sanctioned Russian oil that is already at sea. The measure is intended to stabilise global energy markets after oil prices surged above 100 dollars per barrel following disruptions caused by the war involving Iran.
According to the United States Department of the Treasury, the licence permits the delivery and sale of Russian crude and petroleum products that had already been loaded onto ships as of March 12. The authorisation remains valid until April 11 and is designed to ease supply shortages without substantially benefiting Russia financially.
Officials estimate that the waiver could unlock access to roughly 124–125 million barrels of Russian oil currently stranded at sea across about 30 locations worldwide. The decision comes at a time when global energy supply has been severely affected by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime route connecting the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman.
The waiver follows an earlier 30-day exemption issued on March 5 that allowed India to import Russian oil shipments already in transit. The policy gives importers temporary flexibility to secure supplies while shipping routes through the Gulf remain disrupted.
Scott Bessent described the measure as a limited and carefully targeted step meant to address short-term supply issues rather than significantly altering the broader sanctions regime against Russia.
The move also accompanies other emergency measures introduced by Washington. The United States Department of Energy recently announced the release of 172 million barrels of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as part of a coordinated effort with the International Energy Agency. The agency’s member states have collectively pledged to release around 400 million barrels to cushion the shock to global oil markets.
Oil prices have climbed sharply since the war escalated, rising from roughly 73–75 dollars per barrel before the conflict to above 100 dollars. Much of the increase has been driven by Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil supply normally passes.
In his first remarks after assuming leadership, Mojtaba Khamenei indicated that the waterway would remain closed, suggesting that a rapid restoration of normal oil flows from the Persian Gulf remains unlikely.
