US treasury secretary says renewal of waiver on Iranian oil sanctions won’t happen

By AP 25 April 2026, 1:37 am

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US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent testifies on his agency's proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2027 at a Senate Appropriation subcommittee, at the Capitol in Washington, April 22, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says that the US does not plan to renew a waiver allowing the purchase of Russian oil and petroleum products that are currently at sea. And, he says, a renewal of the one-time waiver for Iranian oil at sea is totally off the table.

“Not the Iranians,” Bessent tells The Associated Press. “We have the blockade, and there’s no oil coming out.”

“And we think in the next two, three days, they’re going to have to start shuttering production, which will be very bad for their wells.”

Bessent’s statements come as the world is on edge over the US-Israeli war in Iran, and global energy markets have been ensnarled by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

The US originally issued a waiver for Russian oil sales and petroleum products in March with the intent of stabilizing global energy markets after crude oil prices surged above $100 per barrel.

The Treasury Department renewed the waiver two days after Bessent said at the White House that he had no plans to extend the sanctions relief.