The US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant said his government would not renew permits to buy Russian and Iranian oil stuck at sea.
Bessantʼs words are quoted by Reuters.
Witt added that concessions on Iranian oil have allowed 140 million barrels to enter world markets. Brent crude is now worth nearly $91 a barrel, about a third more than before the war.
The US Treasury Department on March 13 issued a temporary permit to sell Russian crude oil stuck on tankers at sea to cushion the rise in oil prices caused by the war in the Middle East and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. The permit expired in 30 days, so sanctions were reimposed on April 12.
However, on April 10, Reuters, citing sources, wrote that the US could continue the easing — a decision was to be made in the near future. According to the sources, this issue had already been discussed in the White House and the Treasury Department — it was previously supported. On the same day, Bloomberg wrote that several Asian countries, including India and the Philippines, are calling on the US to continue easing for Russian oil.
On March 20, the US also authorized the sale of Iranian oil held at sea. This authorization expires on April 19.
War in the Middle East and negotiations between Iran and the US
On the morning of February 28, the US and Israel launched an attack on Iran. Iranʼs Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and almost the entire military leadership of the country — about 40 key high-ranking officials — were killed.
Iran, in response to the US and Israeli attacks, began shelling Arab countries and Israel. The war also halted tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, through which almost a fifth of the worldʼs oil exports passed. This led to a sharp increase in oil and gas prices.
On the night of April 8, Trump wrote that he had agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran. Later, Iran published a 10-point peace plan: under it, the parties would cease hostilities, the US would withdraw troops from the Middle East and would no longer attack Iranian bases, and ships would have limited access to the Strait of Hormuz for two weeks.
Iran would also be required to lift primary and secondary sanctions and compensate for losses. Iran would commit not to developing nuclear weapons, and the US would recognize Iranʼs right to enrich uranium.
But on the afternoon of April 8, the Prime Minister of Pakistan said that ceasefire violations had been recorded in several places in the conflict zone in the Middle East. Reuters sources reported that Iran had struck the East-West oil pipeline in Saudi Arabia, which is currently the only channel for exporting crude oil from the country, and other facilities. Before that, Iran announced an American attack on the refinery on Laban Island and threatened to respond.
At the same time, Israel launched its largest attack on Lebanon since the start of the new war: in 10 minutes, the Israeli army attacked more than 100 sites of the pro-Iranian Hezbollah, killing more than 350 people. Israel claims that the ceasefire does not apply to Lebanon, while Pakistani mediators wrote that the cessation of hostilities also applies to Lebanon.
The talks took place on April 10-11 and lasted almost 21 hours. The US and Iran did not agree on a final end to the war.
After the US-Pakistani talks in Islamabad on April 10-11, US President Donald Trump said that the main reason for their failure was Iranʼs refusal to dismantle its nuclear program. And the main US negotiator, Vice President J.D. Vance, called the positions of the parties completely opposite on the issue of guarantees that Iran will never be able to create nuclear weapons — "not just now, not just in two years, but in the long term".
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