Scott Bessent, serving as Treasury Secretary, disclosed Thursday that the United States is seriously considering removing sanctions on Iranian oil stranded on the high seas as part of an aggressive strategy to bring down oil prices. His comments came as oil markets remained highly volatile following Iran’s decision to close the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping.
Iran’s shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz has had an immediate and severe impact on global oil supply, creating a daily shortfall estimated at 10 to 14 million barrels and sending prices above $100 per barrel — a threshold not seen consistently in recent years. The closure has created enormous pressure on governments, businesses, and consumers worldwide.
Bessent confirmed that around 140 million barrels of Iranian crude are currently floating on tankers, oil that was on its way to China before the crisis escalated. The administration’s thinking, as Bessent explained it, is to redirect this supply to global markets — using Iran’s own oil exports to counteract the economic leverage Tehran is trying to gain through the strait’s closure.
The plan includes elements beyond just Iranian oil. Bessent referenced plans for a unilateral US release from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve exceeding the G7’s coordinated 400 million barrel commitment from the previous week, and he affirmed the government would not seek to intervene in financial energy markets.
Experts questioned both the effectiveness and wisdom of the approach. Compliance and national security analysts argued that any financial benefit flowing to Tehran from these oil sales would ultimately strengthen a government the US has designated as a sponsor of terrorism, and that the measure was unlikely to provide lasting market stability. Some described the proposal as deeply contradictory to America’s stated foreign policy goals.