The U.S. Treasury Department has annulled the general license that previously permitted the sale of Iranian oil. This was reported in a statement from the Office of Foreign Assets Control.
The U.S. Treasury Department has annulled the general license that previously permitted the sale of Iranian oil. This was reported in a statement from the Office of Foreign Assets Control.
According to the statement, 'General License X dated June 21, 2026, is revoked and completely replaced by General License X1, effective July 7, 2026.'
Previously, the U.S. partially eased sanctions on Iranian oil exports after describing negotiations aimed at ending the war as 'encouraging.' In June, the Treasury issued a 60-day sanction deferral, which opened up the possibility for the production, supply, and sale of Iranian oil in the U.S.
According to unofficial American officials, Iran's actions in the Strait of Hormuz were 'absolutely unacceptable to the United States and will have consequences.' This move followed the recording of an attack on three tankers in the strait over the past few days.
The Trump administration revoked the license on Tuesday that temporarily lifted oil sanctions on Iran after several ships were attacked in the Persian Gulf. This decision eliminated the main economic incentives that contributed to the agreement to cease hostilities in the Middle East.
The decision was made after Qatar and Saudi Arabia stated that their vessels were victims of attacks by Iran. Amid growing tensions, the international Brent benchmark rose by almost five percent.
A US official told AFP that 'Iran's actions in the strait were completely unacceptable to the United States and will be met with consequences,' referring to a series of attacks in the Gulf. The lifting of sanctions was a key element in negotiations between the parties.
Initially, the sanction relief allowed the Islamic Republic to produce, sell, and supply crude oil and related products until August 21. The US tied the easing of sanctions to progress in dialogue regarding a permanent end to the war.
However, on Tuesday, over several hours, three tankers in the Strait of Hormuz were attacked, including a Qatari LNG tanker, according to maritime observers and Qatar itself. Qatar condemned the attack on its LNG tanker and summoned the Deputy Iranian Ambassador to lodge a complaint. According to Doha, the incident occurred when the vessel was passing near the coast of Oman and was attacked by the Islamic Republic.
Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that it demands an explanation for this event and called on Iran to 'immediately cease any practices undermining regional security and refrain from threatening the safety of international shipping and global energy supplies.'
Furthermore, the kingdom reported that a crude oil tanker flying the Saudi Arabian flag was hit in the same area. Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused Iran of this incident. Although Iran has not admitted responsibility for the attacks, it is involved in the confrontation due to efforts to impose a toll in this waterway. In recent days, Iran has expressed dissatisfaction with vessels bypassing its territorial waters by taking the southern route through Omani waters.
