US May Ease Sanctions Against Russian Oil Over Iran War

• 7.03.2026, 13:13

The statement was announced by Finance Minister Scott Bessent.

Washington may continue easing sanctions on Russian oil exports due to ongoing hostilities in the Middle East, US Treasury Department chief Scott Bessent said.

"Because of the temporary shortage of oil in the global market, we have allowed them [India] to accept Russian oil. We can also lift sanctions on other Russian oil," the minister told Fox Business.

Bessent said "hundreds of millions of barrels" of sub-sanctioned oil are currently sitting on tankers at sea and the US is considering lifting restrictions on the sale of those volumes to "create a supply glut." Washington will be announcing decisions to ease oil market tensions caused by the virtual closure of the Strait of Hormuz due to the war against Iran.

The previous day, Bessent reported that the US had allowed Indian refineries to process oil from Russia for 30 days. The U.S. Finance Ministry noted that it was referring to crude that was loaded onto ships before March 5. "This deliberately short-term measure will not bring significant financial benefit to the Russian government," the ministry said.

Russian presidential spokesman and RDIF head Kirill Dmitriev said in X that he was discussing with the US side the issue of easing restrictions on Russian oil, as "Western sanctions, as practice has shown, are damaging the global economy," RBC reported.

On Friday, March 6, the cost of Brent crude exceeded the $90 mark.

Bloomberg reported the day before that Indian refiners have already purchased about 10 million barrels of Russian oil drifting at sea. In 2025, India averaged 1.7 million barrels per day from Russia.