Washington DC - The US is temporarily allowing the sale of Russian oil that is at sea, the Treasury Department said Thursday, as energy prices soared after US-Israeli strikes on Iran plunged the Middle East into war.

The move marked a momentary easing of economic sanctions against Russia, which has been targeted over its invasion of Ukraine.

On Thursday, the Treasury issued a license authorizing the delivery and sale of Russian crude oil and petroleum products that have been loaded on vessels on or before 12:01 AM ET March 12, through 12:01 AM on April 11.

The move came after Washington last week temporarily allowed Russian oil that was stranded at sea to be sold to India.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement that the latest authorization aimed to "increase the global reach of existing supply."

But he insisted this was a "narrowly tailored, short-term measure."

He added it would not provide "significant financial benefit to the Russian government, which derives the majority of its energy revenue from taxes assessed at the point of extraction."

Bessent had earlier said President Donald Trump's administration was considering lifting sanctions on more Russian oil.

War in the Middle East has upended the world's energy and transport sectors, virtually halting activity in the critical Strait of Hormuz through which a fifth of global oil transits.