Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump agreed on the return of Russian diesel to world markets: the United States lifted sanctions for six months, until April 7. According to the American president, Moscow can “immediately” provide 300,000 tons of fuel, and later even more. The Russian leader confirmed that the country is ready for the supplies. Details are in the material of Gazeta.Ru.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on October 9 in Truth Social a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to the American leader, the sides agreed on phased supplies of diesel fuel from Russia.
As Trump stated, Russia will “immediately” supply more than 300,000 tons of fuel to the American and world markets. Another 500,000 tons are to arrive in November, and immediately after that — 1 million tons.
“In addition, depending on the condition of its oil refineries, Russia will supply 3 million tons of diesel fuel within a short time,” Trump wrote.
Vladimir Putin soon also made a statement on the results of the conversation with his American counterpart: he confirmed Russia’s readiness to supply oil and petroleum products to the United States and to the world market.
“I am confident that this will have a positive effect on the entire global economy,” Putin said.
The conversation was not only about energy. According to Putin, a significant part of the discussion was devoted to the prospects for settling the conflict in Ukraine. The presidents also discussed the situation around Iran and bilateral relations.
“The agreement on continuing personal contacts between the presidents of the two countries, as well as cooperation through presidential administrations, special services, and other agencies, was confirmed,” the Russian leader said.
Kirill Dmitriev, the president’s special representative for investment and economic cooperation with foreign countries, called the leaders’ conversation successful and spoke of the continuation of cooperation between the two countries.
“Energy and economic cooperation between Russia and the United States will continue and will benefit global markets and the whole world,” Dmitriev wrote on X.
Restrictions will be lifted immediately.
After Trump’s statement, the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) published General License No. 135 on operations with diesel fuel of Russian origin.
The document permits the sale, delivery, unloading, and import of such fuel, including its importation into the United States. The authorization is valid until April 7, 2027.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told TASS that Moscow, for its part, is immediately beginning to lift restrictions on the export of diesel fuel. He assured that supplies to the domestic market will be sufficient to fully meet the needs of consumers.
Russia is ready to send additional volumes to the United States already in October. According to Novak, in November and December exports abroad may increase as refineries come out of maintenance. In the future, diesel exports may reach 3 million tons per month.
The deputy prime minister also said that Moscow positively assesses Washington’s steps to stabilize the world energy market and restore normal trade in energy resources. According to him, Russia is ready to continue coordinating actions with the United States in order to make the energy market more predictable and stable.
After reports of the new agreements between Putin and Trump, the Russian stock market accelerated its rise. The Moscow Exchange index rose at one point to 2,400 points, and shares of oil companies rose noticeably.
At the same time, the wholesale price of diesel in New York, according to The Wall Street Journal, fell by 4.5% to $4.67 per gallon.
Diesel shortage, strikes on refineries, and sanctions.
Back in September, Trump linked the global diesel shortage to Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refining. On September 13 he said that Washington had asked Kyiv not to attack facilities connected with the production of this fuel.
“There are many other targets; there is no need to hit diesel fuel, as this harms the whole world,” the American president said.
On October 1, Trump again expressed concern about the condition of Russian refineries. In his assessment, damage to the plants contributes to the fuel shortage and the rise in its price.
On the same day, at the plenary session of the Valdai Club, Vladimir Putin said that Russia has sufficient stocks of diesel fuel, but sanctions prevent its export.
“We already have enough diesel. But it will not reach world markets because there are bans and sanctions on our oil and petroleum products,” the president said.
