US Reverses on Russian Oil Waiver After Bessent Denial

The US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control issued General License 134B on 17 April 2026, authorising transactions tied to Russian crude oil and petroleum products loaded onto vessels from that date. The license runs through 16 May 2026. It replaces a previous waiver that expired on 11 April and reinstates a policy that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had publicly ruled out just 48 hours before its publication.

Bessent told reporters on approximately 15 April that the administration "will not be renewing the general license on Russian oil," citing the need for a consistent signal to Moscow amid the ongoing Iran war. The Treasury's reversal two days later — without a press conference or public explanation — drew immediate condemnation from Senate Democrats.

"This is a 180-degree reversal that sends a deeply troubling message," said Senator Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader, in a statement on 17 April 2026. Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire joined the criticism, arguing the waiver undercuts pressure on Russia at a moment when Ukrainian forces are actively targeting Russian oil infrastructure.

“"This is a 180-degree reversal that sends a deeply troubling message," said Senator Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader, in a statement on 17 April 2026.”

The reversal was driven by economic pressure from US allies in Asia. Countries including India, South Korea, and Japan — which import significant volumes of Russian crude — had pressed Washington to extend the waiver after Iran war-related supply disruptions caused global energy prices to rise sharply. Brent crude had risen above $103 per barrel in the days around the ceasefire announcement, according to Reuters market data from 16 April 2026, and Asian governments communicated directly to the Treasury that alternative supply access was essential for preventing domestic inflation spirals.

By the numbers: the original Russian oil sanctions waiver, issued in the immediate aftermath of the Iran war's outbreak in late February 2026, was designed as a temporary measure to prevent a second simultaneous energy supply shock hitting global markets. Russia exports approximately 4.5 million barrels of crude per day, a significant share of which flows to Asian buyers under arrangements that would technically violate US sanctions without a waiver. General License 134B preserves that flow for another 30 days, through 16 May.

The decision also complicates Ukraine's targeting campaign. Kyiv has argued for months that squeezing Russian oil revenue is a legitimate and effective way to reduce Moscow's war-making capacity. The waiver extension — by keeping Russian crude accessible to major buyers — limits the economic pressure that Ukraine's drone strikes on refineries and storage facilities are intended to create.

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, citing OFAC documents on 17 April 2026, described the move as "US quietly renewing Russian oil waiver amid market turmoil and policy confusion" — a framing that reflects the reputational cost of contradicting the Treasury secretary in public. Policy reversals of this kind are not unprecedented, but they are rarely this visible, and this one arrived at a moment when the administration was simultaneously managing Iran negotiations, a Lebanon ceasefire, and Congressional War Powers pressure.

The May 16 expiry date now becomes the next focal point. If Iran negotiations produce a deal or significant de-escalation before that date, the administration may allow the waiver to lapse and impose full Russian sanctions as a diplomatic gesture to Ukraine and Congressional critics. If the Iran conflict drags on, a third extension is likely — and the political cost of each reversal compounds. Bessent, who has positioned himself as the administration's fiscal hawk, faces the harder task of reconciling his public statements with the Treasury's actual decisions.