Trump strikes deal with Putin on Russian diesel, marking radical reversal of US policy ahead of midterm elections

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says he has reached a deal to get diesel from Russia, a stunning reversal of years of U.S. pressure on Moscow over its war with Ukraine and an attempt to address high fuel prices before the U.S. midterm elections.

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Trump said on social media Friday that he had reached a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone call to discuss a suspected case of plague in Russia. Instead, Trump announced that Russia would immediately supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel, 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.

Trump’s shocking announcement comes after he signed a sweeping Russia sanctions law last month, aimed at cracking down on Russia’s energy revenues, among other areas, that are fueling its war against Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the decision “a weak decision, unfortunately, a weak decision made by strong partners,” according to a statement released by the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington.

Trump announced the deal as his envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner met with Ukrainian officials in Miami to discuss a proposal to try to end the Russo-Ukrainian war.

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“I think our team is just being used as a smokescreen. And that’s definitely not fair. That’s definitely not how partners should treat each other,” Zelenskyy said.

Trump’s decision casts doubt on the likelihood that the White House will impose sanctions on Russia this month, given that a bipartisan law passed by Congress directs the administration to target major importers of Russian oil and gas.

Trump, in his announcement, did not address sanctions or Russia’s war, but said: “Lowering prices for Americans, especially our great farmers, ranchers and truckers, is my highest priority.” »

Washington and Moscow give few details on the agreement

The White House did not immediately respond to questions about who was paying for Russian diesel and when fuel provided under the deal would be available. He also did not say whether subsequent deliveries of Russian diesel, scheduled for next month, would be delivered before Election Day on November 3.

Global gas prices have soared as the war in Iran upends the energy sector. While diesel futures prices fell Friday, the U.S. national diesel gallon average remained elevated at $6.28, according to AAA, after hitting a record high of $6.52 on Sept. 22.

A statement from Putin, released by the Kremlin on Friday, said that during their meeting, he and Trump devoted “particular attention to the prospects for resolving the Ukrainian crisis” and also discussed “the situation around Iran and various aspects of bilateral relations.”

Russia “confirmed its willingness to supply oil and oil products to the American and world markets,” Putin said. “I am convinced that this will have a positive impact on the entire global economy.”

The two leaders agreed to continue their contacts, Putin said in the statement.

Trump-Putin deal sparks immediate backlash

Zelensky, in a lengthy online post reacting to the deal, said Russia would repay him “with more terror and perfidy.” He made it an investment in the war, allowing it to continue.

“This plays into Russia’s hands, allowing it to kill more, wage war longer, have even less respect for America and inflict even greater loss and damage on the world,” he said.

Rep. Don Beyer, the top House Democrat on the Joint Economic Committee, called Trump’s announcement “infuriating.”

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“This is what we warned anyone who would listen: Trump is completely untrustworthy when it comes to Russia,” Beyer said in a statement on

The law signed by Trump last month includes sanctions against Russian officials, banks and a shadow fleet of oil tankers and bans new U.S. investment in Russia and sovereign debt management.

He also ordered Trump to impose tariffs of up to 100% on the top five importers of Russian oil or natural gas, with the exception of countries that import less than 15% of Russian natural gas exports and have taken significant steps to reduce such imports.

The United States has not imported Russian oil or gas since 2022, when the Biden administration banned them due to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Treasury Department decides to ease diesel sanctions for six months

Shortly after Trump’s announcement, the Treasury Department announced that it was immediately issuing a temporary license authorizing the supply of Russian diesel to the global market.

It is the latest in a series of licenses issued by the US Treasury relating to Russian fuel shipments since the start of the war in Iran earlier this year. But this is the first such license easing sanctions on diesel for a period longer than the standard 30-day period since the start of the war in Ukraine.

The new so-called general license means that US sanctions will not apply until April 2027 on deliveries of Russian diesel that were loaded onto tankers on Friday. The department extended similar sanctions easing in March and April, even though Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent ruled out such a measure earlier in the year.

These extensions continue to underscore how the fallout from the war in Iran has strengthened Moscow’s ability to profit from its energy exports, which had been restricted by the United States and other allies since the invasion of Ukraine.

It’s unclear what kind of impact this decision will have on oil prices, given the overall shortage in global supply.

“It’s kind of a mix of deck chairs on the Titanic,” said Michael Lynch of the Energy Policy Research Foundation, a nonpartisan research institution focused on energy and economics.

“If we get diesel from Russia, that basically means their existing customers won’t get it and they’ll have to go elsewhere, which will keep the price where it is now,” Lynch said.

Russia, once a major diesel exporter, has banned exports since July as it struggles to meet the country’s domestic demand due to Ukraine’s repeated attacks on Russian oil refineries. The International Energy Agency says Russian diesel production has fallen by around 30%.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told the official Tass news agency that Russia “is immediately starting to lift restrictions on diesel exports, ahead of schedule.” He added that Moscow could start supplying the United States as early as October and that Russia’s domestic market would also be “fully supplied” with diesel.

Associated Press writers Will Weissert and Konstantin Toropin in Washington, Alex Veiga in Los Angeles and Farnoush Amiri in New York contributed to this report.