Senator Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican who is retiring in January, said Sunday that President Donald Trump's agreement to import Russian diesel fuel may be illegal. Speaking on NBC's "Meet the Press," Tillis stated: "I do believe there's a legitimate case for saying the president's not following the law," and when pressed directly, added, "I believe that he may be."
The dispute centers on a deal Trump announced Friday on Truth Social after a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump said Russia would immediately supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel to American and global markets, followed by 500,000 tons in November, 1 million tons "immediately thereafter," and a conditional 3 million tons dependent on Russian refinery capacity. The Treasury Department issued OFAC General License 135 the same day, authorizing Russian diesel sales and imports into the United States through April 7, 2027.
Tillis's objection rests on a 2022 law the Senate passed unanimously banning Russian energy imports after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. That statute includes a specific process the president must follow to terminate the ban, which Tillis argues the administration has not satisfied. The tension is sharpened by timing: just three weeks before the diesel announcement, Trump signed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, legislation that imposed new sanctions and tariffs on nations importing Russian oil and gas.