Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signaled Thursday that the administration is willing to bend its Iran sanctions rules temporarily to achieve oil market stability, announcing that the US may lift restrictions on Iranian crude oil stranded on tankers in international waters. The announcement reflects the growing pressure on Washington to find supply-side solutions to a price crisis that has kept oil above $100 per barrel since Iran’s Hormuz blockade began.
The Strait of Hormuz closure has been removing between 10 and 14 million barrels of daily oil supply from global markets for close to two weeks, creating one of the most significant energy supply disruptions in recent years. The resulting price surge has raised economic concerns worldwide and has placed the administration under sustained pressure to act with both speed and scale.
Bessent disclosed that approximately 140 million barrels of Iranian crude are stranded on tankers in international waters, oil that had been heading toward Chinese buyers. A temporary sanctions waiver, he argued, could redirect this supply to global markets and provide an estimated two weeks of price relief while the US campaign against the Hormuz blockade continues.
The Treasury has previously issued comparable waivers, including for Russian oil that contributed approximately 130 million barrels to world supply. Additional relief from a unilateral US Strategic Petroleum Reserve release beyond the G7’s 400 million barrel coordinated commitment is also planned, while the administration has committed to avoiding financial market intervention.
Critics from the sanctions and geopolitical strategy communities raised significant concerns. They argued that allowing Iran to benefit financially from oil sales, even temporarily, would provide the regime with resources to sustain military activities and fund proxy forces. Analysts warned that the willingness to bend sanctions rules for short-term market stability could have lasting consequences for the credibility and effectiveness of the broader US Iran sanctions regime.
