A bipartisan coalition of senators is pressing President Trump to abandon an agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin to import an estimated 2.5 million tons of Russian diesel, calling it a “gift to our adversary and a betrayal of our allies.” The deal, struck on October 9, has drawn sharp criticism from lawmakers who argue it undermines U.S. sanctions and aids Moscow’s war effort.
Six Republicans, including former Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and Sen. John Cornyn (Texas), joined six Democrats in signing a letter to Trump on Tuesday. The Republicans also included Sens. Thom Tillis (N.C.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Susan Collins (Maine), and Alan Armstrong (Okla.). Tillis led the GOP signatories, while Sen. Richard Blumenthal (Conn.) spearheaded the Democratic effort. Democratic Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.), Dick Durbin (Ill.), Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.), Jack Reed (R.I.), and Chris Coons (Del.) also signed.
The senators acknowledged Trump’s intent to lower diesel prices, which hit a record $6.53 per gallon last month, but contended the Russian imports would do little to ease costs at the pump. “Allowing Russian-origin diesel into global markets will offer limited to no relief to Americans,” they wrote. “It will have a negligible impact on fuel prices but the revenues the Kremlin will receive from this agreement will undoubtedly finance its desired war of attrition and advance security cooperation with China, Iran and North Korea.”
The letter also warned that the deal could “endanger servicemembers operating overseas in support of Operation Epic Fury,” a reference to the ongoing military conflict with Iran. The senators sent the letter one day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of violating a ceasefire by striking at least six energy targets across Ukraine. Zelensky cautioned that additional energy revenues would fund “its war machine.”
The lawmakers pointed to the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, which Congress passed and Trump signed last month. That law granted the president authority to apply economic pressure on Russia and its partners, including China, to strengthen the U.S. negotiating position in ending the four-year-old Ukraine war. “For decades, America has stood as the bastion of freedom against tyranny, and American presidents have embodied our nation’s resistance to tyrants. Putin is a tyrant,” they wrote. “Withdraw from this agreement, rescind General License No. 135, and execute the authorities provided under the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act.”
The letter follows a joint statement on Sunday from a bipartisan group that included Collins, Murkowski, Tillis, and Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah). That statement noted Congress “explicitly banned Russian energy imports in 2022 to prevent American dollars from financing Putin’s brutal war against Ukraine.” Curtis did not sign Tuesday’s letter.
The pushback comes as the Trump administration faces scrutiny over its Russia policy, with critics arguing the diesel deal contradicts recent sanctions legislation. The senators’ letter underscores growing unease within Republican ranks about the president’s approach to Moscow, even as Trump has downplayed recent Russian strikes and insisted both sides are only “a little off.”
With midterm elections approaching, the controversy could complicate Trump’s agenda and provide ammunition to Democrats who accuse him of being soft on Putin. The White House has not yet responded to the senators’ demands.
