On October 23 local time, the Kremlin in Russia announced that, under the new import agreement, the first tanker carrying Russian diesel to the United States has set sail.
Kremlin spokesman Dimitri Peskov said: "The first tanker has set sail for the buyer and regular supplies will continue."
According to reports by the Russian Internews Agency, Alexander Novak, the deputy prime minister of Russia, stated earlier this week that the first batch consisted of 40,000 tons of diesel.
According to data from the intelligence agency Kpler, the ship's route indicates that it will arrive in New York on November 7. This will be the first time in July 2023 that the United States has received Russian diesel fuel.
Two weeks ago, U.S. President Trump announced that despite Russia's ongoing military actions against Ukraine, he had reached an agreement with Putin.
The sudden shift in the U.S. sanctions policy towards Russia is generally interpreted as Trump's attempt to lower domestic fuel prices before the mid-term elections.
This batch of 40,000 tons of diesel accounts for approximately 300,000 barrels, which is 7% of the United States’ daily consumption. Energy policy experts believe that even if millions of tons of Russian diesel are still imported into the United States in the coming months, this agreement will hardly significantly reduce the high prices of refined oil products.
The report mentioned that the decision by the United States to relax its diesel imports from Russia has left Ukraine shocked and disappointed. Ukraine has always called for countries to tighten sanctions against Russia and cut off the revenue that Russia earns through war. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy lamented that Trump’s decision was a “weak choice made by a strong partner.”
The Associated Press notes that this is another major turning point in Trump’s relations with Zelensky, as their bilateral relations have hit a new low in recent weeks.
