Türkiye is seeking to extend a waiver from the United States that would allow it to continue purchasing natural gas from Russia, a report on said on Thursday.
The waiver, initially granted in December to avoid sanctions on Gazprombank, is set to expire on March 20, and Türkiye is taking steps to prolong it, Bloomberg News reported, citing sources.
The Turkish government has not publicly disclosed the expiration date.
Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek is expected to discuss the extension with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent this week, the report said.
The U.S. imposed sanctions on Gazprombank on Nov. 21 but later exempted major buyers, including Türkiye and Hungary, which had been using the lender to make payments.
Gazprombank was the largest remaining Russian bank not previously blocked by the U.S. Treasury. It is partially owned by Kremlin-owned gas company Gazprom.
Türkiye imports almost all its gas requirements, and Russia is the top supplier, providing around half of the country's pipeline imports.
Russia has faced a barrage of sanctions from Western countries in response to its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, including an oil price cap designed to curb the Kremlin's revenues.
Energy supplies have been particularly in focus after Moscow's transit deal with Ukraine, through which around half of the Russian gas was supplied to Europe, expired on Dec. 31.
Meanwhile, the U.S. government is reportedly studying ways it could ease sanctions on Russia's energy sector as part of a broad plan to enable Washington to deliver swift relief if Moscow agrees to end the Ukraine war.
Ukraine this week agreed to accept a U.S. proposal for an immediate 30-day cease-fire and to take steps toward restoring durable peace after Russia's invasion.
Separately, the administration of President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the winddown of a license allowing energy transactions with Russian financial institutions expired this week, raising pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to come to a peace agreement over Ukraine.
The administration of President Joe Biden had issued the winddown on Jan. 10 as part of its toughest sanctions against Russia's oil and gas revenues. It coordinated the effort with then President-elect Trump's team to improve his and Ukraine's negotiating position as part of any peace talks.
The winddown allowed time to clear remaining transactions ahead of the energy financing deals with Russian banks, including Sberbank, VTB and the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. Letting it expire means the Russian banks now are blocked from accessing U.S. payment systems.
The Biden administration issued the license on energy transactions in a sanctions package shortly after Russia started sending its soldiers into Ukraine to prevent a spike in global oil prices.
