US official: US government will end Iran's maritime oil sanctions waiver this week

According to a report from Reuters, two U.S. government officials said on Tuesday that the Trump administration will allow the 30-day waiver on sanctions against Iranian oil exports to expire later this week, as the U.S. is currently imposing a blockade on shipments from Iranian ports. The waiver, issued by the U.S. Treasury on March 20th, allowed around 140 million barrels of oil to enter the global market and helped alleviate pressure on energy supply during the war with Iran. U.S. Treasury Secretary Mnuchin previously stated that the waiver would expire on April 19th. At a time when both Democratic and Republican lawmakers in the U.S. have criticized the government for temporarily easing sanctions on Iran and Russia amid tensions with Iran and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, a U.S. official stated that Washington has multiple means to target institutions purchasing Iranian oil, including "secondary sanctions." The official mentioned, "Furthermore, with the restoration of UN sanctions on Iran and the history of Iran attempting to hide its illegal activities through apparently legit activities, any transactions with Iran could trigger additional sanctions."