Summary:

President Donald Trump announced on 9 October 2026 that Russia would supply diesel fuel to the American and global markets after a telephone call with President Vladimir Putin. He named four tranches that add up to more than 4.8 million tons: over 300,000 tons immediately, 500,000 in November, 1,000,000 immediately after that, and a further 3,000,000 depending on the condition of Russian refineries. The same day the United States Treasury Department issued General License 135, which authorises transactions in Russian-origin diesel, including its import into the United States, until 7 April 2027.

The Kremlin's statement on the call said Russia had confirmed its willingness to supply oil and petroleum products to the American and world markets. Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told TASS, the Russian state news agency, that Russia was lifting its own diesel export restrictions ahead of schedule and could supply monthly volumes of 300,000 tons in October, 500,000 in November and 1,000,000 in December. President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said the decision handed Putin a gift and would prolong the war.

No contract, price, port or buyer has been published, and Treasury has not said how the licence fits the 2022 law banning Russian fuel imports or the sanctions law Trump signed on 18 September. The European Union's and United Kingdom’s import bans on Russian fuel, and the $100-a-barrel price cap on Russian diesel, remain in force. Russia's ban on diesel exports by fuel producers runs to 31 October.

 

Detailed Report

 

1. Trump Says Russia Will Supply More Than 4.8 Million Tons of Diesel After Putin Call

Trump set out the supply schedule himself, in a single post on his social media platform, Truth Social, on the afternoon of 9 October.

I have just concluded a highly successful discussion with President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, wherein it was agreed that Russia will immediately supply over 300,000 Tons of Diesel Fuel to the American and Global Marketplace, another 500,000 Tons during the month of November, and 1,000,000 Tons immediately thereafter. Additionally, based on the condition of their Diesel Refineries, Russia will then deliver, within a short period of time, 3,000,000 Tons of Diesel Fuel. Between our TOTAL CONTROL of the Strait of Hormuz, and this great announcement on Russian Energy, Diesel Prices for Americans and, indeed, the World, will be COMING DOWN, IN RECORD NUMBERS, AND FAST! Lower prices for Americans, especially our Great Farmers, Ranchers, and Truckers, is my Greatest Priority. This is a very big and important announcement. Additionally, it must be understood, that Iran will not have a Nuclear Weapon! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP

The four volumes add up to more than 4.8 million tons.

Trump returned to the deal in remarks to reporters on departure from the White House on 9 October:

By the way, I think you heard about the oil deal with Russia. That is a big deal. That is massive amounts of oil coming into our country. And I want to thank President Putin to be honest with you. We have massive amounts of oil coming into our country and it's diesel which is what we want.

The announcement followed weeks in which the White House tried other routes to lower diesel prices. The American Automobile Association, the motoring organisation, put the national average at $6.28 a gallon on Friday 9 October, down from a record $6.53 on 21 September in the Energy Information Administration's weekly series, and on 22 September in AAA's national average. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on 22 September that the administration was examining whether a full or partial ban on United States diesel exports was feasible; Politico reported that Trump has since ruled it out. A White House fact sheet on 5 October said Trump had instead negotiated a European release of 100 million barrels of refined diesel over four months.

Treasury acted the same day.

 

2. Treasury Licenses Russian Diesel Sales Until 7 April 2027

At Trump's direction, Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the agency that administers United States sanctions, issued General License 135. The department announced it in a post on the social media platform X, saying the licence would allow the supply of Russian diesel to the global market.

A general licence is a standing permission open to anyone, rather than one granted to a named company. General License 135, signed by OFAC Director Bradley T. Smith and dated 9 October, authorises every transaction otherwise barred by two sets of Russia sanctions regulations that relates to the sale, delivery, offloading or importation of Russian-origin diesel, including importation into the United States. The permission runs until 12:01 a.m. Eastern daylight time on 7 April 2027, a little under six months.

The licence carries one exclusion. It does not authorise any debit to a United States bank account of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, the National Wealth Fund, Russia's sovereign wealth fund, or the Ministry of Finance.

What the document amounts to is a six-month permission for Russian diesel to be sold and landed under American sanctions rules.

 

3. Putin Confirms Willingness to Supply American and World Markets

The Kremlin published a statement in Putin's name the same day, saying the two presidents gave significant attention to the prospects for settling the Ukrainian crisis and also touched on Iran and bilateral relations. On energy, the statement read:

When discussing the state of affairs in the global energy market, the Russian side confirmed its willingness to supply oil and petroleum products to the US market and global markets at large. I am convinced this will have a positive impact on the entire global economy.

An agreement was reaffirmed to maintain personal contacts between the presidents of the two countries and to continue cooperation across their respective administrations, security services, and agencies.

The volumes came later the same day from Novak, the deputy prime minister responsible for energy. He told TASS, the Russian state news agency:

Being one of the key suppliers of diesel fuel to the global market, Russia, on its part, also immediately begins lifting restrictions on diesel exports ahead of the schedule.

TASS reported that Novak said Russia was ready to supply 300,000 metric tons of diesel to the US market and to all its partners as early as October, and to increase exports to roughly 500,000 metric tons in November and to 1 million metric tons in December, with exports rising to almost 3 million metric tons a month further down the road.

Kirill Dmitriev, who heads Russia's state investment fund, the Russian Direct Investment Fund, and is Putin's special envoy for investment and economic cooperation, welcomed the licence on X:

Russia-US cooperation on diesel and energy will benefit the world.

Russia's own export controls were still formally in place when the announcement was made. The government extended on 30 September a ban on diesel exports by fuel producers, in force since 8 July, until the end of October, citing stability in the domestic fuel market and high demand during the harvest. A separate ban on exports by non-producers runs through January. The Russian government has not published a decree amending either ban.

 

4. Zelensky Calls the Licence a Gift to Putin and a Sign of Weakness

Ukraine's president objected the same day, in a Telegram post and in two exchanges with the press. The Trump–Putin call came while a Ukrainian delegation was in the United States for talks on ending the war; the Associated Press reported that Ukrainian officials were meeting the American special envoy Steve Witkoff in Miami as Trump announced the deal.

Zelensky wrote on the messaging platform Telegram late on 9 October, after a bipartisan delegation from the United States Congress had visited Kyiv:

Peace never comes through weakness. Today, representatives of the U.S. Congress were in Kyiv — a bipartisan delegation — and I am grateful to them for visiting Ukraine at such a difficult time. They asked: what is needed to end the war? The answer must be strong. There must be sanctions under the Lindsey Graham bill, there must be support for Ukraine in protecting lives, and there must be pressure on Russia for its war. And today, there was a conversation between the leaders of America and Russia. A conversation that leads to something different.

He set the licence against Russia's position on the battlefield:

This year, Russia is weaker on the battlefield than at any other point in the war. That is why Putin is relying on terror. That is why he is relying on attempts to strike backroom deals to secure some form of pressure relief for Russia, in order to buy more time and more opportunities for war.
Gifts to Putin will not bring peace or any benefit to the civilized world.
Russia will 'repay' the diesel with further terror and perfidy. Allowing Russia to sell petroleum products is an investment in a war that must be ended, not prolonged. What is needed is real de-escalation with Russia on a reciprocal basis.

Speaking to reporters on WhatsApp, as Reuters reported, he turned to the talks in the United States:

I believe our team is simply being used as a front. And that is certainly not fair, nor is it how partners should treat each other.

In a separate telephone interview with the American news site Axios, Zelensky addressed the timing. He began with Putin's birthday earlier in the week:

You know, it looks like a happy birthday present for Putin. It looks absolutely terrible.

He described how the Florida talks came about:

Steve proposed to meet in Florida. And of course I accepted to go there and speak about the possibilities of negotiations. The Americans said they have some ideas and we agreed to come to discuss.
It looks like that they used this opportunity to meet us from one side, and from the other side called Putin and negotiate this.

He questioned what Washington had gained:

What did [Trump] get? That he will have more diesel? For whom? More Russian diesel for Americans? It shows weakness of the world.

He compared the call with the 2025 summit between Trump and Putin in Alaska:

It looks like Alaska number two.

He said he could not tell what Trump intended:

If you allow them to export diesel, and you think before that you have to go to Russia to negotiate, it looks that you are buying this meeting.
Maybe I'm not right. But it looks this way. Otherwise, why do it?

He also acknowledged Ukraine's dependence on Washington:

It's not simple. We need the Americans. We need the Americans to try to stop this war.

 

5. The Licence Authorises What a 2022 Law Still Bans; Treasury Has Not Reconciled Them

General License 135 was issued against sanctions imposed since 2022 by Congress, the White House, the European Union and Britain.

The Ending Importation of Russian Oil Act, approved on 8 April 2022, bans the import into the United States of all Russian products in chapter 27 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, the category covering mineral fuels and oils. A president can end the ban only by certifying to Congress, and the termination takes effect 90 days later unless Congress passes a joint resolution of disapproval. The Associated Press said the United States has not imported Russian oil or gas since the 2022 ban. The specialist shipping outlet Ship & Bunker said it understood the Act remained in effect and that the licence was a temporary executive waiver; Treasury has not published that explanation.

On 22 October 2025 Treasury designated Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia's two largest oil companies, which blocked them and any entity they own 50% or more. Bessent said at the time:

Given President Putin's refusal to end this senseless war, Treasury is sanctioning Russia's two largest oil companies that fund the Kremlin's war machine.

Treasury has not said whether a cargo bought from either company is covered.

The newest is the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, which Trump signed on 18 September. It lets the president impose tariffs of up to 100% on the five largest buyers of Russian oil and natural gas, and it sanctions Putin, officials, oligarchs and Russian banks. It is the law Zelensky asked Washington to apply. Treasury has not said how the licence sits against it.

The Associated Press reported that Treasury issued similar easings on Russian fuel shipments in March and April, after the Iran war began.

 

6. Russian Refining Hit a 20-Year Low in June; Diesel Exports Hit a Decade Low in September

Whether Russia can deliver the volumes depends on its refineries, and Trump tied the last 3,000,000 tons to their condition. The International Energy Agency, the energy adviser to industrialised countries, said in a commentary on 17 September that Russian refineries processed 3.8 million barrels a day in June, the lowest in more than 20 years and about 30% below a year earlier, against installed capacity of about 6.5 million barrels a day. It estimated diesel production down nearly 30%.

Ukraine's Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara said on 4 October, in a statement the ministry's press service reported, that strikes had taken 51% of Russia's refining capacity offline. The General Staff had put the share at more than 45% on 21 September. Putin gave the only Russian official number on the damage, telling the Valdai discussion club on 1 October that it amounted to about 1% of gross domestic product and that the goal had been achieved "partially."

The six largest diesel-producing refineries account for about half of Russian diesel output. A Reuters analysis, carried by the energy news site OilPrice on 15 September, found three of them — Kirishi, Volgograd and NORSI — shut or running at about a quarter of capacity.

Diesel exports fell alongside production. Vortexa, the shipping-data firm cited by Bloomberg on 9 October, put September exports of diesel and gasoil at 144,000 barrels a day, down 28% and the lowest monthly volume in that series in more than a decade. Russian seaborne exports of oil products of all kinds were 4.57 million tons in August, half the level of a year earlier, according to OilPrice, citing Reuters calculations. Diesel exports had already dropped below 1 million tons in June, against about 2.5 million tons a month a year before.

Reuters put the first tranche of 300,000 tons at about 2.25 million barrels. American consumption of distillate fuel, the category that includes diesel, averaged 3.9 million barrels a day in 2025, according to the Energy Information Administration. At that rate the first tranche covers a little over half a day.

Markets moved on the announcement itself. Ultra-low-sulphur diesel futures, the benchmark United States diesel contract, settled on 9 October at $4.73 a gallon, down 4.61% from the day before, according to DTN, an agricultural and energy information service.

 

Conclusion

Trump announced on 9 October that Russia would supply more than 4.8 million tons of diesel, and Treasury licensed the trade until 7 April 2027. The Kremlin confirmed Russia's willingness to supply oil and petroleum products, and Novak told TASS Russia could supply monthly volumes rising from 300,000 tons in October to 1 million in December. Zelensky called the licence a gift to Putin.

No contract, price, port or buyer has been published, and Treasury has not said how the licence sits against the 2022 import ban or the sanctions law signed on 18 September. As of 10 October 2026, Russia's ban on diesel exports by fuel producers is due to run until 31 October.