WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said Friday (Oct 9) that he had secured Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s agreement for a major release of diesel, temporarily easing sanctions on Moscow as he pushes to lower energy costs ahead of midterm elections.
“Russia will immediately supply over 300,000 Tons of Diesel Fuel to the American and Global Marketplace,” Trump said on social media after talks with Putin.
The move comes weeks before key US midterm elections where Trump’s Republican Party risks losing its current grip on Congress, while voters grapple with mounting cost of living worries.
Prices at US gasoline and diesel pumps have surged since late February, when US-Israel strikes targeting Iran triggered Tehran’s blockage of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for energy transit.
This has piled economic pressure on American households, and the US Treasury Department had previously unveiled temporary sanctions waivers to address oil supply shortages sparked by the war.
On the latest release of diesel, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform Friday that Moscow is set to supply “another 500,000 Tons during the month of November, and 1,000,000 Tons immediately thereafter”.
“Additionally, based on the condition of their Diesel Refineries, Russia will then deliver, within a short period of time, 3,000,000 Tons of Diesel Fuel,” Trump said.
The US Treasury issued a temporary licence Friday to enable Russian diesel to flow to global markets through April 2027.
Moscow has been hit with waves of sanctions by the United States and partners since its 2022 invasion of neighbouring Ukraine.
