The vast scale of destruction wrought by U.S. and Israeli bombardment will make sanctions relief all the more vital to Iran’s government as it tries to negotiate a peace agreement.
President Trump faces the possibility that at the end of his own two-to-three week window for wrapping up the war in Iran, nothing much will have changed.
President Trump pivoted after escalating threats. Israel also announced it had killed an Iranian commander leading efforts to block the Strait of Hormuz to almost all shipping traffic.
Republicans and Democrats alike have criticized the Trump administration’s moves, taken to stabilize oil markets rocked by the war with Iran, warning that it is benefiting two U.S. adversaries.
While the president has promised rapid relief, Americans could feel the financial sting of the conflict for some time after it ends.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent estimated that the move would add about 140 million barrels of crude to the oil market.
President Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel suggested that the war with Iran could end soon, but that there were still more attacks ahead.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said removing sanctions on Iranian oil would lower global prices.
Iranian-linked ships carrying Russian oil were among those that received temporary exemptions from sanctions, a sign of how dire the energy crisis is becoming.
Governments have stockpiled oil, and cars are more efficient but the supply shock is global, and there’s no sense of when it’ll end.