Senators challenge Trump’s Russian diesel import agreement

Senators say President Donald Trump’s move to bring Russian diesel into the United States breaches a 2022 law that bars such imports until Moscow ends its war in Ukraine. The bipartisan group—Democrats Jeanne Shaheen, Richard Blumenthal and Ron Wyden, and Republicans Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Thom Tillis and John Curtis—issued a statement on Sunday condemning the decision. They note that Congress explicitly prohibited Russian energy imports in 2022 to stop American dollars from financing Putin’s conflict. Trump announced the deal after a phone call with Vladimir Putin, saying Russia would supply 300,000 tons of diesel immediately to the U.S. and global markets. The Senators argue the administration failed to seek congressional approval or provide the statutory justification required for such a policy shift. They point to the Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, passed weeks earlier, which gives the president authority to impose broad sanctions and 100 % tariffs on the top five oil‑gas trading partners of Russia, including India and China. The lawmakers warn that importing Russian diesel would give Putin a financial lifeline while his forces continue attacks on Ukrainian civilians, and they demand an instant reversal of the policy.

Context

The 2022 ban was part of a wider effort to isolate Russia financially after its invasion of Ukraine. The recent Senate push reflects ongoing tension between the executive’s foreign‑policy moves and congressional control over sanctions.