US eases Russia oil sanctions as Iran war pushes up energy prices

The US has loosened sanctions on other countries buying Russian oil and petroleum already loaded on vessels at sea to curb the economic impact of the US-Israel war with Iran.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the temporary waiver was aimed at promoting "stability in global energy markets". The "short-term measure" would "not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government", he cautioned.

Russia said it had about 100 million barrels of oil currently in transit.

Attacks on ships and energy infrastructure in the Gulf, as well as the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, have rocked global energy markets.

Around a fifth of the world's oil usually passes through the Strait of Hormuz. Oil tankers stranded in the gulf, unable to traverse the narrow channel between Iran and Oman, has led to a growing supply crisis.

Bessent said the temporary waiver would last until 11 April and applied only to "permit countries".

"The temporary increase in oil prices is a short-term and temporary disruption that will result in a massive benefit to our nation and economy in the long-term," Bessent said.

The move comes after Washington announced it would be releasing 172 million barrels of oil from its strategic petroleum reserve on Wednesday.

Kirill Dmitriev, Russian President Vladimir Putin's economic envoy, said the US was "effectively acknowledging the obvious: without Russian oil, the global energy market cannot remain stable".

He added: "Amid the growing energy crisis, further easing of restrictions on Russian energy sources appears increasingly inevitable."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has yet to comment on the latest announcement, but said on Tuesday that easing sanctions would be a "concession" to Russia that would allow it to buy more weapons.

French President Emmanuel Macron, meanwhile, said that the Strait of Hormuz's shutdown "in no way" justified lifting the sanctions on Russia.

He is due to meet Zelensky in Paris to discuss ways of increasing pressure on Moscow. The Elysee Palace said the two presidents would focus on how to help Kyiv defend itself, and also counter Russia's shadow fleet of tankers used to transport sanctioned oil.

The UK will not follow the US in easing sanctions on Russian oil, energy minister Michael Shanks said on Friday.

While he did not criticise the US government, he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "What we absolutely can't have is Putin sitting in the Kremlin seeing this as a chance to invest in the war machine."

The jump in energy prices this week has led to action by several other authorities.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Wednesday that it would release a record 400 million barrels of oil.

Governments in Asia, which are major buyers of oil from the Gulf, have also announced a slew of measures.

The Philippines, for example, gets around 95% of its crude oil from the Middle East. The country's president told public workers to switch to a four-day working week to save fuel.

Meanwhile, Japan, South Korea and Thailand have announced price caps on petrol.

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. There have been concerns that the conflict in the Middle East may distract international attention from bringing the war to a close, or serve to benefit Moscow.

Earlier, Bessent said the US government would start escorting vessels through the Strait of Hormuz "as soon as it is militarily possible".

The possible need for a military escort "was always in our planning", he told Sky News.

Pressed on whether that could start in the coming days, Bessent said "as soon as it is possible to ensure safe passage we will do it".