Staff Reports
President Donald Trump announced a deal this week with President Vladimir Putin to let Russian diesel flow into U.S. and global markets, and the Treasury followed up with OFAC General License 135 to make it happen. That’s a big policy shift. It changes how sanctions work and what leverage the United States and its allies have over Moscow. It also hands Vladimir Putin fresh cash at a time when Ukrainian civilians are paying the price for his war.
What the president announced and what OFAC actually authorized
The president posted that Russia would supply hundreds of thousands of tons of diesel right away, with more to come. The Treasury issued OFAC General License 135 to authorize sale, delivery and importation of diesel of Russian origin through April 7, 2027. The license is narrowly framed — it has payment and account limits — but it lifts a key barrier that kept Russian fuel off global markets. Energy analysts say the first shipments announced are small and that damaged Russian refineries, insurance hurdles and shipping logistics will slow the flow. Fine. The market effect may be modest. The political effect is not.
Why this deal is dangerous for Ukraine
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Ukrainian leaders were right to be alarmed. Letting Russian diesel sell again gives Moscow money it can use to buy missiles, pay soldiers and fund the machinery of war. Even if payments are routed through middlemen, revenue finds the Kremlin. Worse, the move undercuts U.S. leverage. Washington recently urged allies to choke off Russian energy cash. Now the White House has handed Putin a reprieve. If the goal was to prod Russia into changing behavior, this transaction will probably do the opposite.
Congress, allies and credibility at risk
Congress just tightened sanctions to squeeze Russia and Iran, and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle reacted with alarm. Bipartisan critics rightly ask whether the administration undercut the new law’s intent. Our allies will notice, too. Diplomacy runs on trust and predictable rules. If the United States changes course in a heartbeat when political winds shift, adversaries will learn to wait us out and friends will wonder when the rug will be pulled next. That reality weakens our hand on China, Iran and other strategic issues.
This was a policy choice, not a technical glitch. If the White House thinks this deal buys a short-term pump-price reprieve, it is mistaking political theater for strategy. There are smarter ways to help American drivers and businesses without handing Putin a war fund. Treasury should tighten GL‑135 compliance, Congress should demand clear accounting for every dollar, and the White House should reengage Kyiv as a partner, not a bystander. If not, we’ll watch as the diesel sails in and the rockets keep falling on Ukrainian towns — with the United States left explaining why we made it easier. That’s a bad bargain, and someone needs to say so plainly.
