On 18 June, the US Treasury Department extended the term of the Russian-related general licence that authorises certain transactions with the Sakhalin-2 oil and gas project.
The general licence permits transactions until 19 December 2025.
On 21 November 2024, the US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Gazprombank, making it virtually impossible to settle payments for Russian gas supplies to foreign customers. According to the new restrictive measures, transactions involving the bank were allowed until 20 December 2024.
In the justification for the sanctions, Washington emphasised that Russia was using Gazprombank to buy military equipment to continue the war against Ukraine and to transfer payments to the Russian military.
At that time, an exception for the US operations was made for the Sakhalin-2 project – until 28 June 2025.