U.S. says Russian oil price cap does not require checks on every tanker by Turkey

FORT WORTH, Texas (Reuters) – The U.S. Treasury said on Thursday that the price cap on Russian oil imposed by Western powers does not necessitate checks of every tanker passing through Turkish waters and that Ankara has made clear it is working quickly to resolve the issue.

A Treasury spokesperson said that Turkey shares U.S. interests in maintaining a well supplied oil market, despite a back-up of tankers waiting to transit the Bosphorus Strait at Istanbul.

“We’ve been in touch with Turkey about how the price cap only applies to Russian oil, and explained that the cap doesn’t necessitate additional checks on ships passing through Turkish waters,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Our understanding is that virtually all of the delayed tankers are not carrying oil from Russia and are not affected by the cap.”

(This story has been refiled to add dropped word to headline).

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal in Fort Worth; writing by David Lawder in Washington)