In an emergency economic response to soaring oil prices, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Thursday that the United States may temporarily lift sanctions on Iranian crude oil currently stranded on tankers in the open sea. Bessent said the measure would add significant supply to global markets disrupted by Iran’s decision to close the Strait of Hormuz.
The Hormuz blockade has removed between 10 and 14 million barrels of oil per day from global supply, causing crude prices to climb above $100 per barrel and remain elevated for nearly two weeks. The sustained price increase has created economic challenges across industries and borders, prompting the administration to act on multiple fronts.
Bessent said approximately 140 million barrels of Iranian crude are sitting on tankers that had been making their way to Chinese buyers. By temporarily waiving sanctions, the US could redirect this oil to global buyers and provide an estimated two-week supply buffer as Washington continues its efforts to resolve the Hormuz standoff.
This approach mirrors a Treasury waiver applied to Russian oil earlier in the crisis, which added around 130 million barrels to global supply. Additional relief will come from a unilateral US Strategic Petroleum Reserve release beyond the G7’s coordinated 400 million barrel drawdown, with the administration committing to avoid financial market intervention.
Experts in sanctions law and national security were critical. They argued that allowing Iran to profit from oil sales — even under a narrow waiver — would funnel revenue to the Iranian government that could sustain military operations and support proxy forces in the region. Analysts broadly described the measure as a short-term fix with potentially significant long-term strategic costs.
