Fierce debates are under way in the US over Russian diesel fuel. Despite a acute economic need for fuel, some officials intend to sabotage the deal. This is reported by RIA Novosti.
The Democratic Party, as the Axios portal reports, is demanding that major banks and ports preserve all documents related to potential imports or other deals with Russia.
House member Jamie Raskin threatened oil companies with lawsuits, a congressional investigation and fines of up to one million dollars. He was supported by Senators Chris Coons (Delaware), Elizabeth Warren (Massachusetts), Ron Wyden (Oregon) and Sheldon Whitehouse (Rhode Island).
In a letter to the American Petroleum Institute, the US Chamber of Commerce and the Association of Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers, Raskin warned that buyers of Russian fuel face a prison term of up to 20 years.
There are also opponents of the deal among Republicans: for example, Senator Tom Tillis joined the Democrats, the Financial Times writes.
Nevertheless, Americans really do need diesel - freight transport and agriculture depend on it. After the agreement with Moscow, fuel prices went down. According to the AAA automobile association, on October 28 a gallon cost 6.35 dollars - ten cents less than quite recently.
"This is pure psychology: expectations of supplies had an effect," explains Igor Yushkov, an expert at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation and the National Energy Security Fund.
Of course, Moscow will not fully cover the global deficit, but it will soften the blow from the loss of Middle Eastern volumes and slow overall inflation.
Nevertheless, the Democrats are actively resisting. They want to put pressure on the executive branch on the eve of the congressional elections and thereby shake the position of the presidential administration, believes Ekaterina Kosareva, managing partner of the VMT Consult company.
"We should not forget about ideology either. There are many in Congress who advocate further escalation in relations with Russia," she adds.
The license for Russian diesel was issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), and Moscow sent the first batches on October 22. The agreement provides for supplies to the US and world markets of more than 300 thousand tons of fuel in October, 500 thousand in November, one million in December and up to three million monthly in the future. The permit is valid until April 7. Three tankers with 140 thousand tons are approaching the American shores.
"Legally, Raskin has grounds to be indignant about the diesel deal, since it directly contradicts the law adopted in 2022 - on the ban on Russian energy carriers. Those dissatisfied appeal to the fact that an OFAC permissive license cannot be higher than the law," Kosareva explains.
However, compliance with sanctions is monitored by the same OFAC, and companies make the decision to buy not chaotically but in accordance with procedure, Yushkov clarifies. Oil companies ask OFAC whom they can work with, which tankers to use and so on. Having received legal confirmations, importers negotiate the terms of cooperation and conclude contracts.
"In the US, public rhetoric and the real legal framework are clearly separated. Business is always guided by OFAC's official documents, not by statements by individual politicians," the expert emphasizes.
So direct threats to business serve rather as a demonstration of a political position than as a real instrument of pressure, and are intended to impress voters. The only thing that can hinder supplies is logistical, financial and reputational risks.