Trump strikes deal with Putin for Russian diesel in sharp reversal of U.S. policy ahead of midterms
President Donald Trump said he has struck a deal to obtain 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 ahead of the U.S. midterm elections.
US President Donald Trump has announced a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to supply diesel fuel to the US and global markets. According to Trump, Russia will immediately supply over 300,000 tons of diesel fuel, followed by an additional 500,000 tons in November and 1 million tons immediately thereafter. Russia will also deliver another 3 million tons "within a short period of time" after that.
The deal comes as part of Trump's effort to reduce domestic energy prices ahead of the midterm elections. The US Treasury has issued a temporary general license allowing the purchase of Russian diesel until April 7 next year. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reacted sharply to the announcement, calling it a "weak decision" and saying that gifts to Putin would not bring peace or benefit to the civilized world, according to Fortune.
The agreement marks a reversal of years of US pressure on Moscow over its war with Ukraine. Trump said he struck the deal with Putin in a phone call, which was expected to discuss a suspected case of plague in Russia. The move has cast doubt on the US's stance towards Russia, and comes after Trump signed a sweeping Russia sanctions law last month.
Brief written by urgent.news from PBS NewsHour, NPR, Fortune, Hindustan Times - World News, Newsweek — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
