Some in the US administration privately agree that the rise in diesel fuel prices is linked to the American military operation against Iran, Semafor reported on Thursday.
"Some in the administration acknowledge in private conversations that there is a clear reason for the recent price increase — President Donald Trump's ongoing war against Iran," the outlet noted.
Earlier, Trump said that the rise in global diesel prices, in his view, was "mainly caused by the war between Russia and Ukraine, not Iran." On October 9, he announced a successful conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, after which Washington and Moscow agreed on supplies of diesel fuel from Russia. Following that phone call, the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a temporary general license until April of next year, permitting supplies of Russian diesel fuel to the global market.
Semafor, in turn, notes that the US administration has long sought ways to ease sanctions against Russia in order to achieve a deal on Ukraine and help reduce inflation. "Such a step is another inevitable consequence of the war with Iran," an unnamed US administration official said.
He also expressed hope that the US-Russia diesel agreement would become part of a "broader diplomatic strategy."
However, Semafor recalls, this agreement has been criticized, particularly within the US Republican Party. Nevertheless, Trump does not intend to abandon it.
"The president's main priority, his mission, is the American people, helping to lower prices for Americans, and he is doing that. The president has not changed his position," Semafor quoted an unnamed White House official as saying.
