By: Gavin Thorne – SeaPRwire – The pause landed first. President Trump signed an executive order on October 16 that holds off the new round of large-scale economic sanctions Congress passed against Russia. He told lawmakers the delay serves U.S. national interest. Bipartisan members called the move irresponsible. White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said putting the measures into force now would hinder talks aimed at a durable, comprehensive peace. Trump keeps the power to activate them later if national interest requires it.
The exemption covers most clauses of the Graham sanctions Russia and Iran Act of 2026. That includes tariffs as high as 500 percent ad valorem on goods imported from Russia. It also includes tariffs up to 100 percent on goods from the top five importers of Russian crude or natural gas into the United States. The waiver stays in place until the president or the secretaries of state and treasury decide otherwise after consultation. A day earlier the diesel track moved. Putin and Trump spoke by phone on the 9th and agreed on Russian diesel supplies to the United States and global markets. Russia’s government announced on the 10th a partial lift of its diesel export ban. Up to 500,000 tons can now ship to the world market.
Kirill Dmitriev, the Russian presidential special representative for foreign investment and economic cooperation, called the sanctions easing historically significant on the 17th. He said Russia will keep the economic dialogue with Washington open. The day before he noted talks on joint data-center projects, some powered by Russian nuclear plants. Those discussions are already under way. They do not wait for the end of the special military operation in Ukraine.
Zelenskyy answered on two tracks. At the EU summit on the 16th he asked for at least 70 billion euros more support next year. He projected Ukraine’s 2027 war-related spending at 155 billion euros. He pressed for a strong 22nd sanctions package aimed at firms and individuals linked to Russian ballistic missiles, advanced communications systems and drone production. He criticized the diesel deal itself. It would raise Russian revenue and help fund military operations. Ukraine had received no advance notice of the diesel arrangement or the sanctions relief. On the 17th he said Ukraine remains ready to pursue an end to the war through channels that include the United States. New talks could begin as early as next week. Location and format stay open—Ukraine, Europe or the United States, bilateral, trilateral or five-party. The goal is peace, not the shape of the table.
Former Austrian foreign minister Kneissl, cited by the Russian side on the 16th, read the diesel move as a U.S. turn toward pragmatic cooperation with Russia. The EU, she said, still holds an ideological line. The split inside the Western camp is now visible. European Commission President von der Leyen told the same summit that the EU will keep its own sanctions in place despite the American decision. Chinese analyst Chen Yu of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations noted the short-term pressure on Ukraine. The diesel deal was not coordinated with Kyiv. Washington has also threatened cuts in military equipment and intelligence support. Those steps create new battlefield challenges. Zelenskyy’s public dissatisfaction reflects a more passive strategic position. At the same time Chen tied the U.S. adjustments to midterm election needs—calming domestic fuel prices and shifting blame for high oil costs onto Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries. After the midterms the picture may shift again. Domestic checks and European pressure will limit how far the turn can go. Full abandonment of Ukraine remains a low-probability outcome. The conflict itself is likely to stay in a prolonged stalemate of attrition.
The diesel flows. The sanctions sit on hold. The next talks will show whether any of it moves the front.
Author bio: Gavin Thorne, political insider reporter based in Washington D.C., tracking executive decisions, sanctions policy and alliance fractures for major outlets.