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Russia has agreed to supply more than 4.8 million tonnes of diesel to the United States and global markets under an agreement reached between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, as Washington seeks to bring down rising fuel prices.
Trump disclosed the agreement on Friday, October 9, 2026, following a telephone conversation with Putin, announcing a series of planned deliveries aimed at easing pressure on global diesel supplies.
The development comes ahead of the November 3 US midterm elections, with Trump seeking to ease rising energy costs as his Republican Party looks to retain control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Trump outlines phased Russian diesel shipments
In a post on Truth Social, Trump described his discussion with Putin as “highly successful”, announcing a phased supply arrangement intended to increase diesel availability and reduce prices.
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- “Russia will immediately supply over 300,000 Tons of Diesel Fuel to the American and Global Marketplace, another 500,000 Tons during the month of November, and 1,000,000 Tons immediately thereafter,” Trump said.
He added that Russia would deliver another 3 million tonnes within a short period, depending on the operational condition of its diesel refineries, bringing the total planned supply to more than 4.8 million tonnes.
However, the agreement has drawn criticism from Ukraine, which warned that easing restrictions on Russian energy exports could provide Moscow with additional revenue to finance its ongoing war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the decision, arguing that renewed energy cooperation would undermine efforts to end the conflict.
- “Gifts to Putin will not bring peace or any benefit to the civilized world. Russia will ‘repay’ the diesel with further terror and perfidy,” Zelenskyy said in a post on X.
Following the agreement, the US Treasury Department issued a temporary licence allowing Russian diesel imports until April 7, 2027, easing sanctions previously imposed on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.
US temporarily eases Russian energy sanctions
The latest agreement follows earlier decisions by Washington to temporarily ease energy sanctions on Russia and Iran in response to disruptions in global oil supplies.
- In March 2026, the United States granted a 30-day waiver allowing countries to purchase sanctioned Russian crude oil and petroleum products stranded at sea, in an effort to ease rising global oil prices.
- A similar measure was introduced in June, when Washington authorised limited Iranian oil exports under a 60-day sanctions waiver as diplomatic negotiations with Tehran progressed.
Both measures reflected efforts by the Trump administration to increase available oil supplies despite existing sanctions on the two major energy producers.
Nigeria faces uncertain diesel price relief
The latest intervention comes amid a commitment by the Group of Seven (G7) countries to coordinate the release of up to 100 million barrels of emergency crude oil and diesel reserves over four months to ease supply shortages and elevated fuel prices.
The planned release builds on an earlier intervention announced in March, when Nairametrics reported that the International Energy Agency (IEA) had approved the release of 400 million barrels of emergency oil reserves, the largest coordinated stock drawdown in the agency’s history.
- However, it remains uncertain whether the additional Russian diesel supplies and emergency stock releases will translate into lower diesel prices in Nigeria.
- Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that the average retail price of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), commonly known as diesel, stood at N1,420.17 per litre in February 2026, around the beginning of the Middle East conflict.
Recent market data places diesel prices at around N1,800 per litre at some Nigerian depots, although retail prices vary by location.
