License details and purpose
The U.S. Treasury has issued a 30-day license authorizing the purchase and delivery of Russian crude oil and petroleum products that are presently stranded on ships at sea. According to the text of the license posted on the Treasury Department's website, the authorization applies to cargoes that were loaded on vessels as of March 12 and will remain in force through midnight Washington time on April 11.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement on X that the license was intended as a measure to stabilize global energy markets, which have been disturbed by the recent escalation of conflict involving Iran. Bessent added that the measure would not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government.
Context: oil prices and reserve releases
The license announcement came hours after benchmark oil prices climbed above $100 a barrel, reaching their highest levels in nearly four years. The decision to allow countries to purchase Russian cargoes at sea follows a separate U.S. Energy Department action announced the previous day to release 172 million barrels of oil from the U.S. strategic petroleum reserve. That U.S. release forms part of a wider commitment by the 32-nation International Energy Agency to publish a total release of 400 million barrels.
Previous waiver and additional U.S. measures
The Treasury had earlier issued a 30-day waiver on March 5 that was specific to India, permitting New Delhi to take delivery of Russian oil that had been stuck at sea. Other measures aimed at taming energy prices include orders from President Donald Trump directing the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation to provide political risk insurance and financial guarantees for maritime trade in the Gulf. The president also stated that the U.S. Navy could escort ships operating in the region.
Regional tensions and shipping disruptions
U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, and Iran's subsequent responses, have heightened tensions across the region and effectively disrupted shipping passage through the Strait of Hormuz. That paralysis of a key transit route for Middle East oil and gas flows has pushed energy prices higher. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has stated that it will block oil shipments from the Gulf unless U.S. and Israeli attacks stop.
Implications
Officials framed the license as a short-term step to relieve acute market stress without materially enriching Moscow, and it is time-limited to cargoes already loaded by March 12. The measure sits alongside coordinated strategic reserve releases and financial and security steps intended to protect maritime trade in the Gulf.