President Trump said on social media Friday that he struck a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to obtain diesel fuel from Russia — a remarkable reversal of years of American pressure on Moscow over Ukraine, apparently aimed at addressing high fuel prices ahead of the November 3 midterms.
The call had reportedly been expected to cover a suspected plague case in Russia. Instead, the diesel announcement landed hours after Russian strikes killed at least 15 people in Ukraine overnight, a contrast that drew immediate scrutiny of the timing as the administration pursues its Ukraine strategy.
Critics called the move a capitulation that undercuts Western sanctions policy; supporters framed it as pragmatism on energy costs. Either way, it marks one of the most dramatic shifts in the U.S.-Russia economic relationship in years — and it is already a central storyline of the midterm campaign's final weeks.
