WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran – a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs – this week questioned U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the Trump administration’s decision to waive Russian oil sanctions.
In April the U.S. Treasury Department extended its pause on sanctions on Russian oil shipments to ease shortages from the Iran war, days after Secretary Scott Bessent ruled out such a move.
The so-called general license means U.S. sanctions will not apply for 30 days on deliveries of Russian oil that has been loaded on tankers as of April 17.
It extended a similar 30-day license issued in March for Russian oil that had been loaded by March 11. The extension underscores how the fallout from the Iran war has boosted Moscow’s ability to profit from its energy exports, which had been restrained since the invasion of Ukraine.
-The Associated Press contributed to this report.