Treasury sets July 17 deadline for pending Iran oil transactions
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration on Tuesday revoked the license that had allowed Iran to sell oil on the global market, the central economic benefit of the interim peace deal signed in June, after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched missiles and drones at ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
The Treasury Department said the waiver, issued June 21 as part of a memorandum of understanding that ended hostilities between Washington and Tehran and reopened the strait, would no longer apply. The department allowed a grace period through July 17 for transactions already authorized under the license.
Oil prices rose after the announcement. A barrel of Brent crude traded at just below $75, up 2.5% on the day, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The waiver was designed to give Iran a financial incentive to remain in a 60-day diplomatic process aimed at dismantling its nuclear program. Allowing Iran to sell oil and repatriate dollar-denominated revenue into its banking system was the most important economic incentive the U.S. offered. The license was initially set to remain in place for two months and could have been extended.
According to The Wall Street Journal, it was too soon to know whether the move was a diplomatic warning shot. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The interim peace deal, negotiated through Swiss intermediaries and signed in late June, ended a months-long conflict. MSI previously reported that the MOU ended the U.S. blockade on Iran’s ports and reopened the Strait of Hormuz. The agreement included a series of economic incentives — the oil-sales waiver being the most significant — in exchange for Iranian cooperation on inspections and nuclear safeguards.