Bipartisan opposition to Trump's deal for more than 300,000 tonnes of Russian diesel
Key Facts
Republican and Democratic U.S. senators urged President Donald Trump to cancel a diesel deal with Russia that he said would provide immediate supplies of more than 300,000 tonnes, according to the Associated Press. Their opposition followed the Treasury Department's issuance of a temporary license for transactions involving Russian diesel on October 9, 2026. In a letter released by Senator Richard Blumenthal's office, the signatories described the agreement as "a gift to our adversary and a betrayal of our allies." They said allowing the fuel to trade globally would offer Americans little or no relief. Signatories included Republicans Mitch McConnell and John Cornyn, alongside other members of both parties, according to Senator Thom Tillis's office.
The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control issued the authorization as Russia General License No. 135 to facilitate Russian diesel transactions. The official text authorizes transactions involving the sale, delivery, unloading and import of the fuel, including imports into the United States. The license sets out the scope of permitted transactions during the temporary authorization period while retaining explicit financial exceptions. These include a prohibition on debiting accounts held by specified Russian institutions at U.S. financial institutions, according to the license text published by the department. The trade authorization thus allows diesel to reach the U.S. market, with transactions subject to restrictions on accounts excluded from the authorization.
The move comes against a backdrop of pressure on diesel prices and U.S. distillate fuel inventories, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration figures for September. Retail diesel prices averaged $6.29 a gallon during the month, according to the agency's report released in October. On the East Coast, distillate fuel inventories fell during September to 32% below their seasonal average. The agency's comparison uses average inventories over 5 years, placing the region's stored supplies below their seasonal benchmark. In the futures market, diesel prices fell following the deal's announcement on Friday, according to the Associated Press report on the announcement.
Defending the scope of the agreed supplies, Trump said Russian diesel would be released onto the global market, according to Axios. "They're not releasing it for us; they're releasing it for the whole world," he said, explaining the destination he had announced for the Russian shipments. On the Russian side, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said production was sufficient to meet domestic market needs while delivering the agreed volumes globally. Novak linked his country's ability to fulfill the agreement to continued satisfaction of demand within Russia, according to remarks carried by the Associated Press. He said production allowed Russia to "fully meet domestic market needs while delivering the agreed volumes to the global market."
The lawmakers' opposition also rests on the ban on Russian energy imports passed by Congress in 2022, according to an earlier statement released by Senator Susan Collins's office. The statement said the ban was intended to prevent funding for Russia's war and that allowing imports ran counter to it. It accused the administration of failing to consult Congress or provide an explanation justifying its decision, a legal and political objection raised by the statement's authors. Alongside their call to cancel the diesel deal, the letter's signatories urged Trump to use powers under Lindsey Graham's law to sanction Russia and Iran. Tillis's office said Congress passed the law in September and Trump signed it, linking the lawmakers' demand on fuel to enforcement of the sanctions legislation.
On legal deadlines, the Axios report dated October 13 identified October 18 as the next date for implementing the sanctions law. The same report noted that the legislation allows the president to waive key provisions under his implementation powers. Trump's announced supply schedule includes an additional shipment of 500,000 tonnes of Russian diesel in November, according to the Associated Press. That shipment would be followed by 1 million tonnes that the president said would arrive "immediately after that," according to the agency. Trump also announced a further shipment of 3 million tonnes "within a short period," as part of the sequence he outlined for the agreed supplies. The temporary authorization for transactions permitted under the U.S. license expires on April 7, 2027, according to the Treasury Department's text.