Two opinion pieces dispute what Trump's Russian diesel licence means
The US Treasury's General License 135 allows Russian diesel imports until April 2027. A Washington Examiner op-ed reads it as bargaining leverage; a South China Morning Post column sees sanctions treated as tradable.
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The story, neutrally told
Right · 1On Oct. 9, President Donald Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and the Treasury Department issued General License 135, which authorises the sale, delivery and import of Russian diesel through April 7, 2027, according to the Washington Examiner op-ed. Washington ExaminerR “authorizing the sale, delivery, and import of Russian diesel through April 7, 2027” Read at Washington Examiner ↗ Mixed · 2Both pieces say the first tanker, carrying about 40,000 tons of diesel, is due in New York four days after the Nov. 3 midterm elections. Washington ExaminerR “Shipping data listed New York and an arrival on Nov. 7, four days after the midterm elections.” Read at Washington Examiner ↗ South China Morning PostN “though its cargo arrives four days after polls close” Read at South China Morning Post ↗ Centre · 1The South China Morning Post column describes the licence as temporary and meant to bring down pump prices before the midterms, and notes that Congress banned such imports in 2022. It says lawmakers from both parties have questioned whether the licence fits that ban. South China Morning PostN “a temporary Treasury licence meant to bring down pump prices before the November 3 midterm elections”“lawmakers from both parties have questioned whether it can be squared with the 2022 ban on Russian energy imports” Read at South China Morning Post ↗
Right · 1The Examiner op-ed argues the deal cannot lower diesel prices before the election: even the 300,000 tons Trump promised would cover roughly half a day of US distillate demand, and AAA put the average price at $6.32 a gallon on Oct. 18, higher than the week before. Washington ExaminerR “Even the 300,000 tons Trump promised at once would cover roughly half a day of American distillate demand.”“AAA put the American average at $6.32 a gallon on Oct. 18, higher than the week before.” Read at Washington Examiner ↗ Mixed · 2Both pieces say Trump also suspended tariffs on the biggest buyers of Russian oil and gas. The Examiner says that on Oct. 16 Trump signed an order waiving the sanctions law's 500% tariff on Russian goods and 100% tariffs on the five biggest buyers, and that the waiver stays in place only until the president or secretary of state decides further action is needed. Washington ExaminerR “the 500% tariff on Russian goods and the 100% tariffs on goods from the five biggest buyers of Russian oil and gas” Read at Washington Examiner ↗ South China Morning PostN “Trump has also suspended the 100 per cent tariffs on the biggest buyers of Russian oil and gas” Read at South China Morning Post ↗ Right · 1The Examiner op-ed, by a former Georgian counterintelligence officer, rejects Bill and Hillary Clinton's criticism that Trump is abandoning Ukraine and acting as a "Putin puppet". It reads the licence and waiver as holstered pressure that can be reinstated if Putin stalls, and says Republican criticism makes that threat more credible in Moscow. Washington ExaminerR “A waiver is not a repeal. It is a sanction in a holster.”“Every Republican denunciation of the waiver makes reinstatement more believable in Moscow.” Read at Washington Examiner ↗
Right · 1As evidence of leverage, the Examiner points to a Russian partial easing of its diesel export ban, a prisoner swap of 270 each and a body exchange on Oct. 22–23, Putin's agreement in principle to resume three-way talks after Nov. 10, and continued Ukrainian refinery strikes. It also lists costs: Russian strikes on Kyiv's power plants left 600,000 people without electricity during an "energy ceasefire". Washington ExaminerR “On Oct. 23, the two sides swapped 270 prisoners each.”“Russia hit all three of Kyiv’s combined heat-and-power plants and left 600,000 people without electricity.” Read at Washington Examiner ↗ Right · 1It also notes that Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) has introduced a bill to nullify the diesel licence and promised a discharge petition, which needs 218 signatures. Washington ExaminerR “Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) has introduced a bill to nullify the diesel license and promised a discharge petition to force a vote.” Read at Washington Examiner ↗ Centre · 1The South China Morning Post column compares the deal to Ronald Reagan's 1982 offer to sell the Soviet Union grain 18 days before the midterms, after Reagan had sanctioned the Soviet gas pipeline. It argues the diesel deal shows that US sanctions bend to domestic politics: "Every government living under American restrictions now knows that they are for sale". South China Morning PostN “then, 18 days before that November’s congressional elections, he offered to sell the Soviet Union up to 23 million tonnes of grain”“Every government living under American restrictions now knows that they are for sale” Read at South China Morning Post ↗
Centre · 1The column's main concern is China. It says China, the largest buyer of Russian oil and a major beneficiary of the waiver, will meet Trump at next month's APEC summit in Shenzhen seeking looser chip controls, and warns that trading those away would undermine the Netherlands and Japan, which restricted chip-equipment sales to China at Washington's request. South China Morning PostN “China, the largest buyer of Russian oil and a major beneficiary of the waiver”“Both countries restricted sales to China in 2023 because Washington asked them to” Read at South China Morning Post ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left0 outlets
No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Centre1 outlet
- Framing
- A South China Morning Post column frames the licence as a Reagan-style election-year concession that teaches China and allies that US sanctions are negotiable.
- Emphasis
- Legal doubts over the licence, the arrival date after the midterms, China's gain, and the consequences for Dutch and Japanese chip-export controls.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Does not mention the prisoner swaps, planned talks or Ukraine's strikes that the Examiner cites as evidence of leverage.
- Charged language
- “for sale”“diesel diplomacy”
- For example
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“Reagan’s grain offer taught Europeans that American sanctions bend to domestic politics.” — South China Morning Post
“This is where Trump’s diesel diplomacy does its real damage.” — South China Morning Post
Right1 outlet
- Framing
- A Washington Examiner op-ed defends the diesel licence as part of a bargaining strategy and rebuts the Clintons' "puppet" charge as a verdict reached before the evidence.
- Emphasis
- Prisoner and body exchanges, planned talks, Ukraine's continued refinery strikes, and the waiver's reversibility; the costs borne by Kyiv.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Gives little attention to allied or Chinese consequences, and does not discuss the legal question over the 2022 import ban.
- Charged language
- “Putin puppet”“A sanction in a holster”
- For example
-
“A verdict delivered before the evidence is a mood, not a finding.” — Washington Examiner
“Every Republican denunciation of the waiver makes reinstatement more believable in Moscow.” — Washington Examiner
What every side reports
- Treasury issued a licence allowing Russian diesel imports into the US.
- The first tanker carries about 40,000 tons of diesel and arrives in New York four days after the Nov. 3 midterms.
- Trump has suspended tariffs on the biggest buyers of Russian oil and gas.
Where accounts differ
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What the diesel licence and waiver are for
- Centre
- An election-year concession showing that US sanctions can be bought, with costs to allies and benefits to China.
- Right
- Bargaining leverage: a reversible waiver that keeps Putin at the table, with critics' pressure strengthening the threat of reinstatement.
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Whether the licence is legally sound
- Centre
- It rests on shaky legal ground, as lawmakers from both parties question whether it fits the 2022 ban.
- Right
- Not addressed beyond a Republican bill to nullify it.
Donald Trump person
Per the Examiner, Trump said he did not want to drive Russia "foolishly" away from the bargaining table; the SCMP presents the licence as meant to cut pump prices before the midterms.
“he did not want “to do anything that will drive, foolishly, Russia away from the bargaining table.”” — Washington Examiner
“meant to bring down pump prices before the November 3 midterm elections” — South China Morning Post
Vladimir Putin person
The Examiner reports Putin said world diesel prices fell 5% to 6% on the news, and that he agreed in principle to resume three-way talks after Nov. 10.
“Putin says world diesel prices fell 5% to 6% on the news.” — Washington Examiner
Ronald Reagan person
Cited by the SCMP as a precedent: Reagan sanctioned the Soviet pipeline in 1982, then offered grain sales before the midterms.
“Reagan’s Republicans lost 26 House seats anyway” — South China Morning Post
North America1 outlet
The Washington Examiner op-ed argues within US partisan debate, answering Democratic critics and defending the strategy.
“Hillary Clinton called him “a willing Putin puppet”” — Washington Examiner
Washington Examiner
East and Southeast Asia1 outlet
The SCMP column looks at consequences for China, the Netherlands and Japan, not US domestic politics.
“Beijing will recognise this, and neither the Netherlands nor Japan will count on America to back it next time.” — South China Morning Post
South China Morning Post
Left0 articles
No coverage yet.
Centre1 article
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South China Morning PostN · · Opinion
With diesel deal, Trump is teaching Reagan’s lesson to a larger class
Critical Opinion column arguing the licence shows US sanctions are for sale, with damaging effects on allies facing China.
Right1 article
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Washington ExaminerR · · Opinion
Putin got a diesel order. Trump got the calendar
Sympathetic Opinion piece defending Trump's diesel licence as pressure at the bargaining table and rejecting the "puppet" charge.
- 27 Oct 12:00 First Washington ExaminerR Putin got a diesel order. Trump got the calendar Opinion
- 27 Oct 12:30 +30m South China Morning PostN With diesel deal, Trump is teaching Reagan’s lesson to a larger class Opinion
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.
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