U.S. sanctions on some Iranian oil will be temporarily lifted to allow the sale of shipments already in transit, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Friday.
The partial pause on sanctions is intended to help ease what the Trump administration sees as a short-term shock to the global market as a result of the attack on Iran launched by the U.S. and Israel three weeks ago.
Bessent said in a social media post that the U.S. is granting a short-term authorization to allow the sale of about 140 million barrels of Iranian oil in transit.
“In essence, we will be using the Iranian barrels against Tehran to keep the price down as we continue Operation Epic Fury,” he said.
Oil prices have spiked to more than $100 per barrel since the U.S. launched airstrikes on Iran last month, triggering a rise in gas prices. Israeli strikes on Iran’s vast offshore gas field and Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical trade passage that facilitates a significant share of the world’s oil and natural gas trade, have helped drive the increases.
The sales have been authorized for 30 days, according to a copy of the general license issued by the Treasury Department on Friday.
The announcement marks a partial reversal of the longstanding aggressive economic pressure campaign by the U.S. intended to weaken Iran’s economy, though Bessent said the country would have “difficulty accessing any revenue generated” from the sales.
“The United States will continue to maintain maximum pressure on Iran and its ability to access the international financial system,” he added.
Trump appeared to acknowledge he was aware that entering a war with Iran could cause oil prices to spike, even as he touted the success of the U.S. military operation and the strength of the economy.
“I expected it worse actually,” he told reporters at the White House on Friday. “I thought that oil prices would go much higher.”
Bessent said he’s confident the suspension of sanctions on Iran will benefit the U.S. economy in the long run.
“Any short-term disruption now will ultimately translate into longer-term economic gains for Americans — because there is no prosperity without security,” he said.
Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said in response that the easing of sanctions gives the Iranian government “a financial lifeline” as Americans “continue to feel the impact” of the war.
“To say the president has no plan is an understatement,” Shaheen said.