Putin Lied About a Drop in Fuel Prices Following an Agreement with Trump

Vladimir Putin stated that following the agreement to supply Russian diesel to the U.S., global fuel prices fell by 5–6%. However, analytical data does not confirm such a drop. 

According to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, the first tanker carrying diesel fuel will depart for the U.S. on October 22, and the volume of the shipment will be significantly less than the 300,000 metric tons previously announced.

During a meeting in St. Petersburg, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff presented Putin with documents outlining approaches to ending the war in Ukraine. He described the U.S.-Ukraine talks in Oslo as constructive and stated that there is a basis for achieving a ceasefire. The White House hopes for a swift resumption of the trilateral talks.

The parties also discussed a possible prisoner exchange. Among those the U.S. would like to bring home are Americans Andre Khachaturian and Chuck Zimmerman. Moscow, for its part, is interested in the return of Anatoly Legkodimov, founder of the Bitzlato cryptocurrency exchange, and businessman Oleg Olshansky. So far, an agreement has been reached to release only one prisoner—74-year-old American Stephen Gabbard, who was captured by Russian forces in occupied Izyum in 2022.

Vitkoff thanked Putin for his participation in the diesel fuel agreements and spoke about the prospects for developing economic relations between the U.S. and Russia after the war ends. Putin claims that the agreement has already affected global prices, but the actual figures suggest otherwise.

In Europe, diesel prices have fallen by only 0.6%, or about 1.3 euro cents per liter. At the same time, compared to the same period last year, they remain 39.7% higher. According to S&P Global, the market remains under pressure, and analysts do not yet expect a significant drop in prices.

In the U.S., diesel costs about $6.20 per gallon—the same as it did when the agreement between Trump and Putin was announced. Furthermore, the first shipment will be significantly smaller than the volumes previously mentioned by the U.S. president.

According to Novak, the tanker will have a deadweight tonnage of about 40,000 metric tons. However, deadweight tonnage refers to the total mass of the vessel, including cargo, fuel, crew, and equipment, rather than the actual volume of diesel on board.

Earlier, on October 9, Trump reached an agreement with Putin on the supply of Russian diesel fuel to the U.S. and global markets. Moscow announced its intention to supply up to 5 million metric tons of fuel over the course of several months, and the U.S. temporarily eased sanctions restrictions on such shipments.

U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in St. Petersburg on October 21 for talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. According to Ukrainian and American officials, prior to the meeting in Norway, the U.S. and Ukraine agreed on a series of proposals to end the war, including security guarantees for Kyiv.

Republican Senator Tom Tillis stated that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin is manipulating U.S. President Donald Trump, diverting American support away from Ukraine. He also criticized the possible easing of sanctions against Russia and called for an investigation into who is blocking the supply of Patriot missiles to Ukraine from third countries.