US Quietly Renews Russian Oil Waiver Amid Market Turmoil, Policy Confusion

(Alex Raufoglu – RFE/RL) The United States has again temporarily eased sanctions on Russian oil, issuing a new waiver that allows certain shipments already at sea to be delivered and sold, even as Washington publicly insists it is maintaining pressure on the Kremlin. On April 17, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) released General License 134B, authorizing transactions tied to Russian crude and petroleum products loaded onto vessels as of that date. The waiver runs through May 16 and replaces a previous license that expired on April 11. The move comes at a moment of sharp volatility in global energy markets, driven in part by tensions surrounding the Strait of Hormuz amid the ongoing conflict involving Iran. Oil prices dropped significantly the same day the waiver was announced after Iran signaled that the key shipping route would reopen to commercial traffic. – US Quietly Renews Russian Oil Waiver Amid Market Turmoil, Policy Confusion