Russian diesel tankers close in on US ports as Trump, Putin deal triggers legal showdown

As three tankers carrying diesel are crossing the Atlantic toward U.S. ports, with a fourth set to depart soon, President Donald Trump's fuel deal with Moscow is drawing opposition in Congress and threats to investigate companies involved in the shipments.

A former Treasury Department sanction official confirmed to Fox News Digital that has the legal authority to allow the imports despite a 2022 law banning Russian energy products, arguing that Washington's authorization does not eliminate the underlying prohibition.

"The concern that the president has violated a law from 2022 that prohibits the importation is actually not founded in law, so the president certainly has the authority in this case to provide the authorization," Jeremy Paner, a partner at Hughes Hubbard & Reed, told Fox News Digital.

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Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak also confirmed the tanker movements Tuesday on the sidelines of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GEC) summit, saying a fourth vessel was expected to depart Russia Oct. 28.

"There are three ships at the moment. The fourth has not yet departed," Novak said, according to TASS.

The shipments, totaling around 140,000 metric tons, is the first authorized cargo under an Oct. 9 agreement between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin temporarily permitting imports of Russian diesel.

The administration followed the process to ease diesel prices amid supply disruptions linked to the war with Iran and Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries.

The deal triggered opposition on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers argue the administration lacks the authority to bypass the Ending Importation of Russian Oil Act of 2022 without congressional approval.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., also escalated opposition Tuesday, demanding that two shipping companies recall tankers carrying Russian diesel bound for U.S. ports.

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In letters to Eastern Mediterranean Maritime Limited and PetroVietnam, Blumenthal argued that the Treasury Department's General License No. 135 cannot override the 2022 import ban and warned that the deliveries would violate federal law.

He also demanded details about the companies involved in the shipments and any federal guidance they received by Oct. 31.

Paner, however, drew a distinction between removing sanctions and authorizing specific transactions.

"Trump's action did not lift or remove or waive the underlying prohibition on the importation of Russian diesel into the United States," Paner said.

"What it did was authorize it, and, as a matter of law, that's different. A license does not get rid of a prohibiti