WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan group of six senators on Sunday called on President Donald Trump’s administration to “immediately reverse course” on a diesel purchase project of Russia as part of an effort to bring down high fuel prices.
Trump shocked lawmakers when he announced on social media Friday that he had reached a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone call. He said Russia would immediately supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel to the U.S. and global market, followed by another 500,000 tons in November and a million tons “immediately thereafter.” Russia will then deliver another 3 million tonnes “in a short period of time,” he wrote.
Four Republican senators and two Democratic senators signed the statement released Sunday protesting the deal. They said the administration failed to consult with Congress or submit any explanation for its decision, as required by law.
“The United States should not provide Putin with a financial lifeline while Russia continues to kill Ukrainian civilians. The administration must immediately reverse course,” they wrote.
The Republican senators who signed the declaration are Senators Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Thom Tillis of North Carolina and John Curtis of Utah. The Democratic senators are Senators Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut.
Tillis, in an interview that aired Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” said there are legitimate arguments that the president is not following the law if the administration goes ahead with its diesel purchase plan.
“We have been very clear that Russia is the aggressor. Russia is the one that can end this war by withdrawing the territories it occupied,” Tillis said.
Trump’s announcement comes just weeks after Congress. passed a law which ordered Trump to impose substantial tariffs on major importers of Russian oil or natural gas, except for countries that import less than 15% of Russian natural gas exports and have taken significant steps to reduce such imports.
The congressional effort was aimed at reducing the flow of money Russia receives from oil and gas sales to finance its war against Ukraine.
Lawmakers also noted that Congress explicitly banned Russian energy imports in 2022 to prevent the United States from financing the war.
“Congress has been clear: The United States should not import oil from Russia until it ends its aggression against Ukraine and ceases its threats against our NATO allies,” the six lawmakers wrote in their statement. “President Trump’s decision to allow imports of Russian diesel into the United States goes directly against this law.”
Sen. John Barrasso, Republican of Wyoming, said Trump was focused on lowering the cost of energy when asked whether the president’s action would violate U.S. law.
“The president is in the balance and has to make tough decisions,” Barrasso said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
He also encouraged Trump to implement the sanctions law passed by Congress last month.
“This is just another piece of pressure that the president can use against Putin in an effort to achieve a long-term solution in this part of the world,” Barrasso said.
Trump recently sought to blame record U.S. diesel prices on Ukraine rather than the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan. Iranwhich pushed up global energy prices.
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