OIL Published March 19, 2026 9:52am EDT

Bessent rules out government intervention in oil futures market during Iran war

Treasury secretary says unsanctioning Iranian oil can help boost global oil supply

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent joins ‘Mornings with Maria’ to discuss the Iran war, surging oil prices, market volatility, Fed uncertainty, Powell’s future and the U.S. strategy to stabilize the global economy.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. government will not intervene in oil futures markets even as the administration moves to offset supply disruptions tied to the Iran conflict, arguing that Washington’s response will focus on boosting physical crude availability instead.

"We’re absolutely not doing that," Bessent told FOX Business' "Mornings With Maria"on Thursday, when asked about possible Treasury intervention in the futures market. "We’re not intervening in the financial markets. We are supplying the physical markets."

In an interview with Maria Bartiromo, Bessent said the administration has prepared a coordinated supply response designed to cushion the impact of any temporary disruption around the Strait of Hormuz. He said the U.S. had already moved to "unsanction" Russian oil cargoes already on the water, estimated at about 130 million barrels, and could do the same with roughly 140 million barrels of Iranian oil in floating storage.

"In essence, by the time we unsanctioned the floating Iranian oil, we would have intervened and we would have created about 260 million excess barrels of energy," Bessent said, calling that a "physical intervention" rather than a financial one.

Bessent said that volume could help cover what he described as a temporary deficit of 10 million to 14 million barrels per day if shipping through the strait is interrupted, providing roughly three weeks of market stabilization. He also pointed to a 400 million-barrel coordinated Strategic Petroleum Reserve release approved last week and said the U.S. could act again unilaterally if needed.

"The largest coordinated SPR release in history, 400 million barrels, was approved last week," he said. "The U.S. could unilaterally do another SPR release to keep the price down."

Bessent framed the strategy as part of a broader effort to balance pressure on Iranwith energy market stability. He said the U.S. has avoided striking Iranian energy infrastructure even while escalating military operations, arguing the goal is to preserve supply while keeping pressure on Tehran.

"We have lots of levers," Bessent said. "We’ve got plenty more that we can do."

Supplying the world more oil from Iran is going to ultimately bring down prices in America, according to Bessent, who noted the U.S. does not rely on Middle East oil but the chokepoint on oil through the Strait of Hormuz has indirectly strained supply and spooked crude futures markets.

https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/bessent-rules-out-government-intervention-oil-futures-market-during-iran-war

US May Use Iranian Oil To Cool Prices: Scott Bessent

2:07

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signalled a potential shift in strategy, saying Washington may temporarily lift sanctions on roughly 140 million barrels of Iranian oil currently at sea. The move, he suggested, could inject 10–14 days’ worth of supply into global markets to keep prices in check during the ongoing conflict. Bessent indicated that much of this oil was originally destined for China, and that the U.S. could effectively use these barrels to counter Iran’s economic leverage. Emphasising that the administration has “multiple levers” at its disposal, he framed the move as part of a broader effort to manage energy markets while sustaining pressure on Tehran.

https://youtu.be/teVZhQSD3LM

Iran attack wipes out 17% of Qatar’s LNG capacity for up to five years, QatarEnergy CEO says

Iranian attacks have knocked out 17 per cent of Qatar’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) export capacity, causing an estimated US$20 billion in lost annual revenue and threatening supplies to Europe and Asia, QatarEnergy’s CEO told Reuters on Thursday.

Saad al-Kaabi said two of Qatar’s 14 LNG trains and one of its two gas-to-liquids (GTL) facilities were damaged in the unprecedented strikes. The repairs will sideline 12.8 million tons per year of LNG for three to five years, he said.

“I never in my wildest dreams would have thought that Qatar would be - Qatar and the region - in such an attack, especially from a brotherly Muslim country in the month of Ramadan, attacking us in this way,”Kaabi said in an interview.

Hours earlier Iran had aimed a series of attacks at Gulf oil and gas facilities after Israeli attacks on its own gas infrastructure.

State-owned QatarEnergy may have to declare force majeure on long-term contracts for up to five years for LNG supplies bound for Italy, Belgium, South Korea, and China due to the two damaged trains, Kaabi said.

“I mean, these are long-term contracts that we have to declare force majeure.We already declared, but that was a shorter term. Now it’s whatever the period is,” he said.

Exxonmobile impact and byproducts

U.S. oil major ExxonMobil is a partner in the damaged LNG facilities.

The Texas-based firm holds a 34 per cent stake in LNG train S4 and a 30 peer cent stake in train S6, Kaabi said.

The fallout extends well beyond LNG.Qatar’s exports of condensatewill drop by around 24 per cent, while liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) will fall 13 per cent. Helium output will fall 14 per cent, and naphtha and sulfur will both drop by six per cent.

The damaged units cost approximately US$26 billion to build, Kaabi said.

QatarEnergy had declared force majeure on its entire output of LNG after earlier attacks on its Ras Laffan production hub.

“For production to restart, first we need hostilities to cease,” he said.

https://www.ctvnews.ca/business/article/iran-attack-wipes-out-17-of-qatars-lng-capacity-for-up-to-five-years-qatarenergy-ceo-says/

Qatar will not protect or help Iran ever again.

Russia calls for ‘safety island’ around Iran’s Bushehr nuclear plant

3/19/26

A senior Russian official called onThursday for the creation of a safety zone around Iran’s Russian-built Bushehr nuclear plant to prevent a major disaster, two days after a projectile struck within several hundred meters of its reactor.

Alexei Likhachev, head of state nuclear corporation Rosatom,said there were 72 tons of fissile material and 210 tons of spent nuclear fuel at the site, and that any strike on it could lead to a catastrophe.

“If an incident were to occur, it would be at least regional in scale and would affect a large number of countries in the Middle East.None of the parties to the conflict would avoid radiation exposure in the event of a serious accident at Bushehr,” Likhachev told reporters.

Iran, which has been under heavy US and Israeli airstrikes since February 28, said on Tuesday that an unspecified projectile had hit the area near the Bushehr plant.

The International Atomic Energy Agency said a structure about 350 meters from the reactor was hit and destroyed, but there was no damage to the reactor itself and no injuries to staff. Rosatom said radiation levels around the plant remained normal.

Rosatom built the first 1-gigawatt unit of Iran’s only nuclear power plant at Bushehr and is constructing additional units there.

It has evacuated some of its hundreds of staff from there in recent weeks. Likhachev said a further major evacuation was planned, which would leave only a few dozen employees at the site.

“I believe political leaders and lawmakers must now play their role and do everything possible to ensure there is no recurrence of such risks — not even a hint of possible direct strikes on the site of an operating power unit,” he said.

“We appeal to the leadership of all parties to the conflictto make this area an island of safety and to rule out any risk.”

Likhachev added that the US and Israel had precise information on the geographical coordinates of the Bushehr plant and the new units under construction there.

https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2026/03/19/russia-calls-for-safety-island-around-iran-s-bushehr-nuclear-plant

UAE hardest hit by Iranian strikes on neighboring states - FT

20 hours ago

Financial Times chart shows cumulative Iranian attacks of drones and missiles on Persian Gulf states from February 28 to March 16,with UAE suffering 1,627 drones and 319 missiles—far more than Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar or Oman.

https://www.iranintl.com/en/202603180191

The Gulf States are more pissed than ever, there will be a significant change on how they deal with Iran. And it might be done like the olden days.

Netanyahu: Does anyone really think someone can tell Trump what to do?

Netanyahu: Does anyone really think someone can tell Trump what to do?(is he blaming Trump now?)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives an update on the conflict with Iran

9:08

https://youtu.be/ZOlQEE3vXqk

Obama DHS sec WARNS: This is what keeps me up at night…

Former DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson discusses the partial Homeland Security shutdown, rising national security concerns as TSA agents call out of work, and more

5:14

https://youtu.be/6X1rBugrgdY

US weighs insurance requirement for Hormuz escorts – Financial Times

15 hours ago

The Trump administration has explored plans to require commercial vessels escorted by the US Navy through the Strait of Hormuz to buy US government-backed insurance, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the discussions.

The proposal would link naval escorts to a program led by the US Development Finance Corporation in partnership with insurer Chubb, potentially requiring ships to obtain coverage for hull, machinery and cargo through the scheme rather than the private market, according to the report.

The discussions followed earlier plans to provide up to $20 billion in reinsurance as disruption linked to the Iran war pushed oil prices above $105 a barrel, though it remained unclear whether the insurance purchase would become mandatory.

https://www.iranintl.com/en/202603197967

>>24401255 San Francisco is sinking at a rapid pace, NASA data showsPN

Wasn’t this said in a prophecy a couple of years ago, along with a lot of western states? Maybe it’s the Atlantis and Lemuria curse.

>>24401404 BREAKING: Four Colorado Democrats just BLOCKED Senate Bill 26-111 which would require jail time for child rapists.PN

This is a logical question with all the states not penalizing pedophiles and child abuse, are all or any of these “lawmakers” pedophiles and child abuse criminals? There can not any other reason why state would deny these laws.All of the lawmakers and breakers should be thoroughly investigated by the FBI.

Maybe they are being blackmailed,but nothing can justify allowing children to be abused, tortured or killed by demented creeps

A Very Interesting Denial of FISA-702 Abuse by FBI Director Kash Patel Surrounding President Donald J Trump

March 19, 2026 | Sundance |

During congressional testimony today, Texas Representative DanCrenshaw, a man who is leaving congress at the end of this term having lost his primary race,took the opportunity to question FBI Director Kash Patel about FISA-702.

As most are aware the reauthorization of FISA-702 has a deadline if mid-April this year, and there is a great deal of background debate surrounding it. Apparently, Dan Crenshaw wants to ensure the renewal is successful.

Crenshaw begins his defense by asking a very specific question to FBI Director Kash Patel about President Trump’s Crossfire Hurricane targetedand whether FISA-702 was related to that investigation.Here it is important to rememberthat the NSA database was exploited in 2016 (Spygate) that ended with the Title-1 FISA warrant (Russiagate).

Both are correct in that FISA-702 was not the legal underpinningfor the Carter Page FISA warrant, ultimately targeting Donald Trump.

However, conveniently omitted in the questioning is the original surveillance of the 2016 GOP candidatesfrom November 2015 through April 2016 that did involve exploitation of the database under the justification that FISA-702 creates. WATCH:

These are not “myths” Mr Crenshaw. You are both correctthat there is no “authority granted under 702” to conduct surveillance.

However, in 2016 conducting surveillance using 702 as a justification is what took place.

The collection of American citizen metadata does factually take place. At this point no-one denies it.

That data is then stored in a searchable database, a library of U.S. citizen data colloquially known as the “NSA database”.

Within the NSA database that metadata collection creates,there is a process to search it based on “identifiers.”

The collection of data, the database itself, as well as the search functioning therein, is part of the toolbox for FISA-702 surveillance.

(Knowing Sundance, this is serious challenge to Crenshaw and maybe he has been in the FISA database and still is, and how involved he was with something illegal he did perhaps on Tucker, or Trump, and covering up the CIA.)

(more…)

“That’s a Myth”, Rep. Crenshaw Confronts FBI Chief on Tucker Carlson CIA Surveillance Claim | AC1G

U.S. Representative Dan Crenshaw questions FBI Director Kash Patel during a House hearing, addressing claims by Tucker Carlson that he was targeted by U.S. intelligence.Patel clarifies how FISA surveillance works, while Crenshaw dismisses the accusation, saying “nobody is spying” on Carlson. The exchange highlights ongoing debate over surveillance powers and civil liberties. For more details, watch our story and subscribe to our channel, DRM News.

“Nobody Is Spying on Tucker Carlson” — Crenshaw, Patel Clash in Hearing

Crenshaw Confronts FBI Chief on Tucker Carlson CIA Surveillance Claim

“That’s a Myth” — Patel Responds as Crenshaw Addresses Tucker Carlson Claim

4:49

(https://youtu.be/evXfw8OqhaQ

>>24402504. Crenshaw thinks he’s smart but he’s not, did he do something illegals on FISAcqueries

Elise Stefanik Questions DNI Gabbard About Politically Shaped Intelligence, and Joe Kent

March 19, 2026 | Sundance |

Representative Elise Stefanik is a strong supporter of Israel and has concerns about current narrativesswirling aroundthe politicization of Intelligence Community information to shape anti-Israel sentiments. Part of thatcollective effort is a not-so-subtle effort to remove DNI Gabbard from her position by questioning her loyalties.

Aconsiderable segment of Washington DC wants to return to a more Dan Coats style DNI.

As a tenured member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI),Mrs. Stefanik used her time during the congressional testimony of Gabbard, Ratcliffe and Patel to confirm the Trump administration policy toward the IC to remove all political interests. WATCH:

In the political horse racing analogy, the stable of Peter Thiel has taken major hits recentlyas the stable of Larry Ellison is gaining considerable influence. However, it’s a steeplechase and anything can happen.

==Peter Thiel <-Elon Musk <-> Larry Ellison==

'Why Did You Say That?': Elise Stefanik Grills DNI Tulsi Gabbard On Her Opening Testimony

At a House Intelligence Committee hearing on Thursday, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY)questioned DNI Tulsi Gabbard about her personal views and her professional work.

5:14

https://youtu.be/JJbqLiV24M8

The Israel lobby and Democrats really want DNI Gabbard out of her job. Both Gabbard and Ratcliffe said that Israel has a different mission in the Iran war! The question is how do we get the bought and sold Israel owned House and Senate members out?

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2026/03/19/elise-stefanik-questions-dni-gabbard-about-politically-shaped-intelligence-and-joe-kent/

>>24402546

Holy Shit a lot of our lawmakers are Israel First!That makes them spies for Israel with all the power they carry being in Congress. AIPAC is the largest donors to lawmakers for decades, so what they believe the members believe. And even more if they are the same race. We thought China is the biggest donor, nope, but they are as bad stealing our technology.

I bet there are a lot more in House and Senate want Tulsi and Ratcliffe out of their positions.

That means Trump chose two American hero’s to do these jobs! Good Job President Trump!

>>24402551. Yes but she’s looks a lot darker then 7-8 years ago

>>24402554. What happened to her eyes and face?

>>24402559. She did sound like that!

Do you want to know why Israel attacked the Iranian and Qatar gas and oil fields?

Israel started a new endeavor in January of 2026

I’ll post the rest of Sundance’s analysis, long article.

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2026/03/19/israel-unilaterally-strikes-iran-qatar-south-pars-gas-field-president-trump-is-not-happy/