Congress from both parties opposes Trump's Russia diesel sanctions lift

US senators and House members from both parties opposed President Donald Trump's decision to lift sanctions against Russia, reminding him of the Graham Act, which calls for tougher restrictions on Russian energy exports. On 9 October, Trump said he had spoken to Vladimir Putin and reached an agreement on supplying Russian diesel fuel to the US and global markets.news.err.ee+1

The opposition matters because it crosses party lines and invokes legislation Congress already passed to pressure Russia. Democratic Senator Mark Kelly, commenting on the agreement to supply Russian diesel, recalled the Lindsey Graham Russia and Iran Sanctions Act, which provides for tougher sanctions against Russia and punitive tariffs on countries that buy Russian energy.ukrinform.net

Lawmakers cite the Graham Act

Kelly asked what happened to the Lindsey Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, saying its goal was to choke off Putin's war money by punishing countries evading sanctions and buying Russian oil. He questioned whether the US was now sanctioning itself and whose side Trump was on. Democratic Congresswoman Marie Gluesenkamp Perez said Congress and the American people do not support buying Russian oil to fund Putin's war in Ukraine.

Gluesenkamp Perez noted that weeks earlier an overwhelming majority in the House passed legislation to levy steep new sanctions on the sale of Russian oil, and that before she came to Congress a near-unanimous vote expressly prohibited importing Russian oil under the Ending Importation of Russian Oil Law. She said she is working with lawmakers from both parties on a bill blocking all purchases of Russian oil.

Republican Representative Michael McCaul said Congress, through the sanctions bill, had given Trump significant powers and leverage over China and Russia to end the war. He said he understood the desire to bring down diesel prices but was concerned lifting sanctions on Russian oil would fund the Kremlin's war machine. Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski urged Trump to use those authorities instead of allowing Russia to export diesel and rake in revenues.

Where the diesel volumes came from

The promised volumes are large on paper but small against US demand. Estonian MP Eerik-Niiles Kross wrote that Russia is expected to supply an initial 300,000 metric tons of diesel, then 500,000 metric tons in November, then 1 million and later 3 million metric tons if possible, totalling 4.8 million metric tons. The US consumes about 16 million metric tons of diesel per month.

Kross noted the first 300,000 metric tons is less than 2 percent of one month's US consumption and the November 500,000 metric tons about 3 percent. The full 4.8 million metric tons equals roughly 30 percent of one month's consumption, but no delivery deadline is set. Russia exported about 27 million to 40 million metric tons of diesel in 2025, and seaborne exports in the third quarter of 2026 fell to about 190,000 barrels per day, an 80 percent decline from the start of the year.

Republican Representative Brian Fitzpatrick announced plans to draft a bill preventing Trump from unilaterally lifting sanctions on Russian oil. Senators from both parties sent a letter to US administration officials urging them to use all tools under the Graham Act to pressure Russia. Murkowski said Russia's return to global energy markets can be discussed once the war is over, but everything fueling it must be cut off now.politico.eu

Ukraine strikes and the deal's timing

Zelenskyy said Russian strikes that killed at least 17 people including three children in Zaporizhzhia were Moscow's thanks for lifting sanctions on diesel exports, with five glide bombs dropped on residential buildings. The strikes came one day after Trump announced the temporary lift. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said suspending sanctions on Russian diesel provides Moscow more revenues to wage war.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine would be ready to stop striking Russian oil refineries if Russia stops attacking Ukrainian energy infrastructure, adding any de-escalation must be reciprocal.

Kallas said EU foreign ministers intend to approve on Monday the biggest set of sanctions listings targeting Russia's war machine since the start of the war. She said Russian strikes killed over 80 Ukrainian civilians in two days. Ukrainian officials met the same day with European and US officials in Miami in a diplomatic push to end the conflict.