US President Donald Trump on 13 October brushed aside Republican senators opposing his Russian diesel arrangement, calling them not 'serious,' and floated the possibility of a US 'cap on diesel' — a sweeping measure that could restrict American exports and reshape global fuel markets. The remarks came as a sanctions law Trump himself signed last month is set to allow tariffs on countries purchasing Russian oil starting 18 October.

Trump Defends the Russian Diesel Deal

Speaking to reporters at the White House before departing for a campaign trip to Youngstown, Ohio, Trump defended the arrangement he brokered with Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'I think these are Republicans that can't really be serious,' Trump said before boarding Marine One. 'We have — you know, we make a lot of oil. We could do a restriction on oil, but the rest of the world would be greatly, greatly affected if we do that.'

He went further, suggesting a targeted fuel measure: 'We could do a restriction, you know, a cap on diesel, keep it all for ourselves. That would have a very big impact.' Trump added that the arrangement was not a personal deal but one 'for the rest of the world,' and framed any resulting benefit to American farmers and ranchers as a justification. He offered no details on how such a cap would function, whether it would apply to exports or domestic supply, or how it would be reconciled with ongoing US purchases of Russian-origin diesel.

The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued General License 135 on Friday, formally authorising transactions involving Russian-origin diesel. Trump had announced last week that Russia would supply roughly 300,000 tonnes of diesel immediately, with nearly five million tonnes in total, as his administration seeks to bring down fuel prices that have climbed since the Iran war began in February.

Republican and Democratic Criticism Mounts

The bipartisan pushback is significant in scale and specificity. Republican critics include Senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, and John Curtis of Utah. They joined Democratic Senators Jeanne Shaheen, Ron Wyden, and Richard Blumenthal in a joint statement on Sunday urging the administration to 'immediately reverse course.'

Murkowski pointed directly to the contradiction embedded in Trump's own legislative record. 'The President should be using those authorities instead of allowing Russia to export diesel, rake in revenues, and continue its catastrophic war in Ukraine,' she said. Collins was equally blunt: 'I was a co-sponsor of the Russian sanctions law, which the President recently signed, but is now not following.'

The Law Trump Signed — and Appears to Be Sidestepping

Public Law 119-111, named after the late Senator Lindsey Graham, empowers the President to impose duties of up to 100 per cent ad valorem on goods from countries purchasing Russian-origin crude oil and related energy products. The law also grants the President authority to waive those duties in the US national interest — a provision critics argue is now being invoked to benefit Moscow. Congress had originally banned imports of Russian energy into the US in 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The first duties under the new law can take effect from 18 October. The administration has not publicly stated whether India will be on the list of targeted buyers.

India's Exposure and New Delhi's Position

India has been among the largest buyers of Russian crude since 2022. Trump imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods in August 2025 specifically over those purchases. New Delhi has long argued it is held to a double standard. 'Where the United States is concerned, it continues to import from Russia uranium hexafluoride for its nuclear industry, palladium for its EV industry, fertilisers as well as chemicals,' India's External Affairs Ministry said in August — a pointed rebuttal that has not prompted any formal US response.

With 18 October approaching and the administration silent on India's status, New Delhi faces renewed uncertainty over whether it will be swept into the tariff net even as Washington simultaneously licenses Russian diesel imports for its own market.