Washington is shifting toward pragmatic cooperation with Moscow while the EU remains driven by ideology, Karin Kneissl has said<\/p>\n
Washington\u2019s diesel deal with Moscow has exposed divisions within the West over its anti-Russian stance, as the US shifts toward a more pragmatic approach, former Austrian Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl has said.
\nUS President Donald Trump announced the agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week, easing sanctions on Russian diesel imports until April 2027 in an effort to bring down soaring fuel prices. The move marks a departure from the Western sanctions policy imposed on Moscow since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022.
\nSpeaking to TASS on Friday, Kneissl described the agreement as more than a \u201csymbolic breakthrough,\u201d pointing to the 300,000 tons of Russian diesel expected to reach the US and global markets by November.
\n\u201cThe EU says that this undermines the West\u2019s united position. However, one could also say that this marks a shift by the US toward a more pragmatic approach, while the EU continues to pursue a purely ideological line,\u201d she stated.
\nThe agreement has drawn criticism from European leaders attending a two-day EU summit in Brussels this week. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis accused Trump of sidelining the bloc, telling reporters that \u201cTrump, by doing that business with Putin, stabbed us in the back. We have to do something.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Zelensky has made his choice, now America must make its own<\/p>\n
Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev, however, welcomed the agreement, arguing that lower fuel prices were essential to Europe\u2019s economic competitiveness. \u201cAny step in reducing fuel prices and to guarantee our competitiveness, we appreciate,\u201d he said.
\nEU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas described the agreement as a \u201cgift to Putin,\u201d while defending Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reaffirmed on Friday that the bloc would maintain its sanctions against Moscow despite Washington\u2019s decision to ease restrictions on Russian diesel.
\nBrussels\u2019 hardline stance contrasts with that of EU member Slovakia, which remains heavily dependent on Russian energy and has sought to maintain economic ties with Moscow. Prime Minister Robert Fico has repeatedly called for diplomacy rather than continued military support for Kiev.
\nThe dispute has also strained relations between Washington and Kiev. Trump has repeatedly urged Vladimir Zelensky to halt Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries, blaming the attacks for pushing up global fuel prices.<\/p>\n
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Zelensky got \u2018overconfident\u2019 with Trump \u2013 Alexandre Guerreiro<\/p>\n
Zelensky criticized the diesel agreement as a \u201cweak decision\u201d and accused Trump of \u201cbetrayal.\u201d Ukraine continued targeting Russian energy facilities, including a refinery in Ryazan Region on Thursday, prompting Trump to condemn the attacks as a \u201cdisgrace.\u201d At Friday\u2019s summit, Zelensky sought additional financial and military assistance from European leaders but left empty-handed, with only renewed promises of support.
\nThe confrontation comes as global diesel supplies remain under pressure from the US-Israeli war on Iran, which has severely disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
\nThe International Energy Agency agreed on Thursday to accelerate the release of emergency oil reserves, including more than 20 million barrels of diesel, in an effort to ease shortages and bring down prices.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Washington is shifting toward pragmatic cooperation with Moscow while the EU remains driven by ideology, Karin Kneissl has said Washington\u2019s diesel deal with Moscow has exposed divisions within the West…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":40017,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t