President Donald Trump’s announcement Friday that Russia would supply diesel fuel to global markets marked a clear shift from recent efforts to target Russia’s energy exports and pressure Russia to end the war in Ukraine.
President Trump claimed the measure, announced with less than a month left until the affordability-focused midterm elections, would rapidly bring down record-high diesel prices.
But commentators and critics were quick to highlight the contradictions between this new policy and previous U.S. efforts to crack down on Russian oil sales.
These efforts most recently include enactment of the Lindsay O. Graham Russia-Iran Sanctions Act of 2026, which gives President Trump the authority to impose tariffs and other restrictions of up to 100% on top buyers of Russian oil and gas. Trump signed the bill into law just three weeks ago.
“Congress just passed legislation that gives President Trump the authority to impose new tariffs on major buyers of Russian oil and gas,” Scott Linthicum, deputy director of the libertarian Cato Institute, said after Trump’s Friday announcement.
“Can America impose tariffs on America?” he joked.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), a member of the Senate’s Ukraine caucus, denounced President Trump’s move as “directly contrary to Congress’ intent in the bipartisan sanctions bill.”
Peter Harrell, a visiting fellow at Georgetown University Law Center’s Institute of International Economic Law, said in an
Some of the criticism was bipartisan.
“Through Lindsey O. Graham’s Russia-Iran Sanctions Act, we gave the President significant power and influence over China and Russia to end President Putin’s war with a negotiated settlement,” Rep. Michael McFaul (R-Texas) said in the X-Post. “Unfortunately, while I understand the desire to lower diesel prices, I am concerned that lifting sanctions on Russian oil will only serve to fund the Kremlin’s war machine, promoting more violence and destruction, as we have seen in recent days,” McFaul said.
The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC’s questions about the diesel deal with Russia.
Less than a year later, the Trump administration imposed sanctions on several Russian oil companies, accusing Russia of not being serious about the peace process aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.
President Trump has previously criticized NATO allies for continuing to buy Russian oil. In a post on Truth Social in September 2025, he wrote, “The purchase of Russian oil by some people was shocking! This greatly weakens our bargaining position and bargaining power against Russia.”
Later that month, President Trump again spoke out against world leaders for dealing with Russia.
“They are funding a fight against themselves. Who the hell heard of that?” he said in a speech to the United Nations General Assembly. “What they’re doing is impossible. They’re fighting Russia and buying oil and gas from Russia.”
President Trump announced the diesel deal in a Truth social post Friday afternoon after a “very successful meeting” with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Under the agreement, Russia will supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel immediately, followed by another 500,000 tons in November, then 1 million tons “soon after,” and another 3 million tons depending on refinery conditions, Trump wrote.
Shortly afterward, the Treasury Department announced that President Trump had directed the Office of Foreign Assets Control to immediately issue a “Temporary General Authorization Authorizing the Supply of Russian Diesel to World Markets.” OFAC specified that sanctioned transactions will be permitted for approximately six months until April 7th.
Russia appears to welcome the move. Following the announcement, the X account associated with President Putin’s economic envoy Kirill Dmitriev said: “Russian-American cooperation on diesel and energy will benefit the world.”
But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, whose military has begun targeting Russian refineries, said in a harsh statement that any easing of U.S. sanctions on Moscow would “play into Russia’s hands.”
“Easing sanctions against Russia without a clear and durable de-escalation agreement with Russia is a clear weakness,” Zelensky said. “Allowing Russia to sell petroleum products is an investment in a war that must end, not prolong.”
“We look forward to the United States’ fair support for the defense of life, for the defense of the Ukrainian people, and for the United States to engage in a strong dialogue with Russia in response,” he said.
“It’s not about being weak, it’s about being strong,” he added.
President Trump late Friday afternoon thanked President Putin for making it possible to bring “a lot of oil” into the United States.
“The world needs oil. This is diesel, and we need it, so I’m very happy to have it,” Trump told reporters before heading to Syracuse, New York.
The Trump administration has previously temporarily eased some of Russia’s energy sanctions, but the scope was narrower than Friday’s announcement.
Earlier this year, in an effort to stabilize the market after the outbreak of the Iran war, the Trump administration issued a limited 30-day waiver allowing countries to buy sanctioned Russian crude oil that was already in transit.
