US eases Venezuela oil sanctions to boost supply amid Iran war

WASHINGTON (TNND) — The Treasury Department eased sanctions on Venezuela on Wednesday, allowing U.S. companies to do business with the country’s state-owned oil firm as the Trump administration looks for ways to boost oil supplies during the war with Iran.

“Under President Trump’s leadership, the United States is working in partnership with the Government of Venezuela to reopen and restore Venezuela’s energy sector,” the department wrote on X. “The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a license broadly authorizing established U.S. entities to engage in many types of transactions with Venezuela’s state-owned oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PdVSA), and its subsidiaries.”

“This license will benefit both the United States and Venezuela, while supporting the global energy market by increasing the supply of available oil. It will also help incentivize new investment in Venezuela’s energy sector.”

Recently, the White House also said Trump would waive the Jones Act requirements for 60 days, allowing goods shipped between U.S. ports to move on non-U.S.-flagged vessels.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the Jones Act waiver would help “mitigate the short-term disruptions to the oil market” during the Iran war and would “allow vital resources like oil, natural gas, fertilizer, and coal to flow freely to U.S. ports.”

The moves come as global oil prices have been spiking since the U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran on Feb. 28. In retaliation, Iran has blocked the shipment of oil from the Strait of Hormuz, where one-fifth of the world’s oil typically passes through from the Persian Gulf to customers worldwide.

Since the ouster and arrest of Nicolás Maduro as Venezuela’s president during a U.S. military operation in January, Trump has said the U.S. would effectively “run” Venezuela and sell its oil.

The U.S. license provides targeted relief from sanctions, but does not lift the penalties altogether. The license allows companies that existed before Jan. 29, 2025, to buy Venezuelan oil and engage in transactions that would normally be banned under American sanctions, reopening trade for a major oil producer to global markets.

Last week, the U.S. temporarily lifted sanctions on Russian oil currently stranded at sea.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, “The temporary increase in oil prices is a short-term and temporary disruption that will result in a massive benefit to our nation and economy in the long-term.”

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Editor’s notes: The Associated Press contributed to this article.