Motorcyclists line up to refuel at a gas station in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, on March 28, 2026. (Devi Rahman/AFP via Getty Images)

More than 100 countries have taken policy steps to address rising energy costs and other effects of the conflict in the Middle East, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).

As of the IEA’s most recent update on June 12, a total of 113 countries – as well as the European Commission, the main executive body of the European Union – have made at least one such policy change in response to the war:

• The most common of these has been adjusting taxes, a step taken by 55 countries. Turkey, for instance, lowered its fuel tax on oil.
• 40 countries have launched public awareness campaigns, asking or requiring people to limit their energy use. In Ireland and Japan, for example, the government has encouraged energy conservation, while the Philippines and other countries have declared national energy emergencies.
• 32 countries have added new fuel subsidies or expanded existing ones. Fiji, for example, instated a diesel rebate for its main electricity provider. In Mozambique, the government began subsidizing public transit.
• 28 countries have pursued structural policies focused on long-term change, related to improving energy efficiency or reducing fossil fuel dependency. For example, the Netherlands accelerated the trade-in of internal combustion engine vehicles for electric vehicles and the replacement of at-home gas boilers with heat pumps.

About this research

This Pew Research Center analysis examines how countries have responded to rising energy costs and other effects of the Iran war.

Why did we do this?

How did we do this?

We relied on data from the International Energy Agency’s 2026 Energy Crisis Policy Response Tracker. For the purpose of category totals, countries are counted once per occurrence per category, even if they enacted multiple policies that fall into that category. In Spain, for example, the following fall under “Taxation”: cut fuel value-added tax, including vehicle fuel and liquefied petroleum gas; suspend the hydrocarbon excise duty; cut electricity tax.

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Many countries – predominantly in Asia – have responded with more than one of these initiatives. Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam have enacted at least six types of energy-focused policy changes to address effects of the Iran war. Laos has enacted nine types of policies, more than any other country.

The United States is not among the countries that made nationwide energy policy changes in response to the war, though President Donald Trump in May floated the idea of suspending the federal gas tax. Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky and Utah have provided some form of relief from state gas taxes.

Related: What to know about U.S. oil production and consumption in 6 charts

Asia, Europe stand out for policy responses

Energy policy responses to the Iran war have been most common in the Asia-Pacific region, where 29 countries have enacted 124 such changes (counted once per occurrence per category). In Bangladesh, for example, lawmakers have made four types of policy changes: limiting air conditioning temperatures, closing public and private universities, asking people and businesses to save energy, and capping fuel purchases for vehicles plus promoting public transportation.

In Europe, 30 countries and the European Commission have enacted 86 energy policy changes. For example, Sweden made four types of changes: halving the price of public transport passes, extending reductions on gas taxes, accelerating the electrification of public vehicles like police cars, and providing crisis support for the farming and fishing industries and assistance for electricity bill payments.