This is the third such case of American concessions since the outbreak of the war with Iran. According to a Reuters source, sanctions on Russian crude oil shipped by ship will be suspended for another month “after several countries asked for more time to make purchases.” The last license expired on May 17.
Announcing the decision on Platform X, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the waiver is intended to “provide the most vulnerable countries with temporary access to Russian crude oil that currently remains offshore.”
“This general license will help stabilize the physical oil market and ensure that oil reaches countries most vulnerable to energy losses. It will also help redirect existing supplies to countries most in need, limiting China's ability to stockpile oil at depressed prices,” Bessent wrote.
The first exemption from sanctions, introduced in early March, was justified by the desire to reduce oil prices due to Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. Bessent emphasized that this is a temporary solution that should not significantly increase the Kremlin's revenues. Initially, he also announced that this action would not be repeated, but after a few days he changed his mind.
Europe criticizes the decisions of the American authorities
Washington's decisions were criticized in Europe. When asked by PAP in April, EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic admitted that during his visit to Washington he talked about this matter with Bessent and received assurances that the license would not be extended again.
“I don't want to speak on his behalf, but I clearly understood that this would not happen again,” he said.
Read also: Donald Trump's decision is costing Americans dearly. They are losing billions of dollars
Russia is earning billions of dollars from the war in Iran
According to estimates by Democrats in the Senate, as a result of the US war with Iran and the exclusion of Russian oil from sanctions, Russia earned an additional approximately $150 million. per day for the first month of the license period, and a total of over USD 4 billion so far. When the first license was issued in March, the ships carried over 140 million barrels of Russian oil. The second license covered approximately 100 million barrels.
