US President Donald Trump's announcement that he would purchase 300 thousand tons of diesel fuel from Russia had a shocking effect in Ukraine and Europe.
Donald Trump has set himself on a new collision course with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and his European allies after a surprising deal to buy diesel from Russia, bucking years of US and Western pressure for the Kremlin to end its four-and-a-half-year war against Ukraine.
Zelenskiy reacted harshly to Trump's announcement of his agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin, calling it an "absolutely terrible" and "unfair and dishonest" step.
In a move likely to create a new crisis with Washington's NATO allies, Trump announced his deal with Putin on the Truth Social network. Trump stated that it was essential to reduce fuel prices in the United States, which were rising rapidly as a result of his decision to go to war with Iran.
Trump wrote:
"I had a very successful meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, during which it was agreed that Russia would immediately supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel fuel to the American and global markets, an additional 500,000 tons through November, and 1,000,000 tons immediately thereafter. Depending on the condition of its diesel refineries, Russia will deliver an additional 3,000,000 tons of diesel fuel within a short period of time."
Trump additionally added: "Diesel prices for Americans, and indeed the world, WILL FALL AT A RECORD AND FAST! It is my top priority to ensure lower prices for Americans, especially our great farmers, ranchers, and truckers."
Fuel prices had risen sharply due to Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a strategically sensitive bottleneck that was the transit point for 20% of global oil supply before the war.
Although the cost of fuel has increased for drivers, with an average price of $4.20 per gallon, the factor that caused the greatest political damage to Trump and the Republicans as the US Midterm Elections in November approached was diesel prices, which rose to a record level of $6.52 last month.
Rain of criticism from Democrats
The deal was criticized by Democrats as undermining legislation that Trump signed last month, which called for sweeping sanctions on Russian banks, officials and tankers, and also directed him to impose heavy tariffs on the five largest countries that import oil or natural gas from Russia. The law in question gave Trump broad discretion to make exceptions to its provisions.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer; "This is the picture of failure," he said in a statement alongside Senator Jeanne Shaheen, the senior Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee, and Senator Elizabeth Warren, the senior Democrat on the Banking Committee. "President Trump's failure to deliver on his promises to reduce costs for Americans and his failure to protect America against its adversaries is a failure. It is a failure to disregard the legislation that aims to cut off the revenues of Russia's war machine and limit the purchase of Russian oil and gas, and the will that Congress passed with bipartisan support just weeks ago." was used.
Some Republicans also criticized the deal.
Republican House Member Don Bacon of Nebraska wrote: "It is morally wrong to keep Putin's war economy afloat when he is using that money to bomb cities. The president's Russia and Ukraine policies are failures. We need moral clarity, not moral ambiguity."
Zelenskiy: You invested in the war
Perhaps the harshest reaction came from Zelenskiy, who told Axios that the deal "looks like a birthday present for Putin and the situation is absolutely terrible." The Russian leader turned 74 earlier this week.
Zelenskiy, who has a tense relationship with Trump, stated in a long social media post that the agreement meant "investing in a war that should not be prolonged, but rather ended." He stated that Russia would likely respond with "more terror and treachery."
“This situation benefits Russia, allowing it to kill more people, wage the war longer, respect America less, and inflict greater losses and damage on the world,” Zelenskiy said. At the time Trump announced this oil deal, his representatives Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner were meeting with Ukrainian and European officials in Miami to discuss proposals to end the war.
In a separate statement made through Ukraine's Embassy in Washington, Zelenskiy said Ukrainian negotiators "were used as a smokescreen for the agreement" and called it a "weak decision taken by powerful partners."
"This is absolutely not fair. This is absolutely not how partners should treat each other," Zelenskiy said.
Trump recently criticized Ukraine for attacking Russian diesel refineries and called on Zelenskiy to choose alternative targets. The Ukrainian leader rejected the request unless Russia agreed to a mutual de-escalation plan that would stop Moscow's attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure.
The agreement also comes on the heels of escalating tensions between Russia and Washington's NATO allies in Europe, amid speculation that Moscow is preparing for military action to test the alliance's resolve.
This latest development is likely to lead to further deterioration of relations between Zelenskiy and the Trump administration. Zelenskiy was almost cornered by Trump and Vice President JD Vance in that much-talked-about meeting at the White House last year, in which the President told him, "He has no leverage."
However, it is stated that Trump's trust in Putin has decreased since then and he has expressed his disappointment in Putin's failure to reach an agreement.
Trump's desire to reach an agreement with Putin that will reduce fuel costs comes despite Russia's support for Iran in its war with the United States. of Russia; American forces are believed to have provided Iran with satellite intelligence and aerial surveillance data containing the locations of their ships, aircraft and military bases. Russia also supplied unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) parts and ammunition to Iran.
