Treasury Secretary Bessent says US won't be renewing waivers for Iranian and Russian oil

The United States will not be renewing the waivers that allowed purchase of some Iranian and Russian oil without facing U.S. sanctions, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters on Wednesday.

Reuters reported on Tuesday that Washington would ‌not renew a 30-day waiver of sanctions on Iranian oil at sea that expires this week, and let a similar waiver on sanctions on Russian oil expire over the weekend.

"We will not be renewing the general license on Russian oil, and we will not be renewing the general license on Iranian oil. That was oil that was on the water prior to March 11. So all that has been used," Bessent said at a White House briefing.

The moves signal an end to the Trump administration's efforts to use the sanctions waivers to free up more oil supplies and lower soaring global energy prices.

The Iranian waiver, which the Treasury Department issued on March 20, allowed some 140 million barrels of oil to ​reach global markets and helped relieve pressure on energy supply during the war, Bessent said last month. The waiver is set ​to expire on April 19.

-Steve Holland and Humeyra Pamuk/Reuters