Two tankers carrying Russian diesel change course away from the US
Two sanctioned tankers hauling Russian diesel under the Trump-Putin deal no longer list the US Atlantic coast as their destination, the Financial Times reports.
Two tankers carrying Russian diesel fuel to the United States have changed course, the Financial Times reported. They are the Russian tanker Talisman and the Sierra Leone-flagged Leruo, owned by a Hong Kong company. Both are under Western sanctions, and neither now lists the US Atlantic coast as its destination. The vessels were part of the diesel supply arrangement agreed between the US and Russian presidents, so the shift raises questions about how the deal is playing out.
Where the ships went
The Leruo switched its destination to Brazil as early as Monday, November 2. The Talisman moved from the Atlantic into the Mediterranean and is now off the coast of Algeria. Its destination field reads “awaiting orders,” which, according to the FT, likely means the cargo has no confirmed buyer or port yet.
A third tanker, the Agioi Fanendes, owned by Greek shipping company Eastern Mediterranean Maritime, shows the same status but is still heading for the US. Its owner told the FT that it is proceeding for orders because the discharging port is not yet confirmed. Another sanctioned tanker, the Beast, owned by Seychelles-based companies, loaded fuel at Russia's port of Primorsk on October 27 and is still on course for the US. The independent Russian investigative outlet Agentstvo was first to notice the course changes.
Background of the deal
US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed in an October 9 phone call on supplies of Russian diesel to American and global markets. The US Treasury Department issued a temporary license allowing the global sale of Russian diesel, circumventing US sanctions. Reuters reported that the first tanker, the Agioi Fanendes, left Primorsk on October 22 and was expected to deliver 40,000 tons of fuel to New York by November 7.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the deal “an investment in the war.” Trump said it would lower US fuel prices, but analysts and experts considered that unlikely. The Wall Street Journal, citing American Automobile Association data, wrote in late October that US fuel prices had risen by another seven cents since the deal was announced.
