"We are going to very strongly enforce the Iran nuclear sanctions," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Friday. "We've told our counterparts that we expect them to enforce the sanctions, but if there are specific situations, we're open to listening."
Mnuchin and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke to reporters aboard Pompeo's plane as they flew back from Mexico,where they held talks with the government and president-elect on border security, immigration and trade negotiations.
After president Donald Trump withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal in May, his administration has warned countries to reduce their Iranian oil imports to zero or face US sanctions, vowing that no exemptions would be made.
But Mnuchin, who said he would be discussing the issue with G20 finance ministers this week in Buenos Aires, Argentina, signaled that there could be some wiggle room as countries gradually reduce their dependency on Iranian oil to avoid further volatility in the energy markets.
"We're not making any commitments," Mnuchin said. "We want people to reduce oil purchases to zero, but in certain cases, if people can't do that overnight, we'll consider exceptions."
Last month, Washington's threat of sanctions sent oil prices surging, and US crude spiked 3.5% to about $70.50 a barrel. Prices have climbed sharply this year, in part due to concerns about US sanctions on Iran disrupting supply from the OPEC nation.
Trump has repeatedly complained about oil prices being too high, even though his own policies have played a role.
When the administration announced it was withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal, it imposed several new sanctions, including ones that will require all countries to eliminate Iranian oil imports by November.
National security adviser John Bolton, meeting last month with European officials to talk about the US campaign against Iran told them there would no exemptions from sanctions for European companies or entities that do business with Iran under UN sanctions, European officials said. Bolton said the US was looking for Iran's "unconditional surrender" in meeting demands on Iran made by Pompeo during a speech in late May. The top US diplomat said at the time that the US wanted Iran to abandon its nuclear program, pull out of the Syrian war, and cut ties to terrorism.