The former Vice President of the United States Mike Pence criticized the decision by Donald Trump to lift sanctions on Russian fuel, calling it a "betrayal" of Senator Lindsey Graham, and demanded that the president immediately rescind the diesel agreement reached with Putin.
«President Trump's decision to lift sanctions on Russian fuel amid ongoing and brutal attacks by Putin against civilian targets in Ukraine makes no sense and is a betrayal of the legacy and leadership of the late Senator Lindsey Graham,» Pence wrote on Facebook.
On Friday, October 9, Trump announced an agreement with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to bring millions of tons of diesel from Russia into the U.S. and international markets. The goal is to ease high fuel prices.
Pence focused his criticism on the contradiction that the measure represents: just three weeks prior, on September 18, Trump signed the "Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026", a bipartisan sanctions law approved by both the Senate and the House, which authorizes tariffs of up to 500% on Russian goods. The legislation is named after the Republican senator from South Carolina, who passed away in July at the age of 71, and was one of the leading advocates for Ukraine in Congress and the driving force behind this law until his final days.
"Instead of applying the harsh sanctions that Lindsey Graham fought for until his last breath to enact, President Trump has announced that the United States is lifting sanctions on Russian energy, fueling Putin's war machine," noted the former vice president.
Pence also argued from his direct experience after visiting Ukraine in September: "As I was able to see firsthand in Ukraine last month, Putin is losing this war. Ukraine has stalled the Russian army and has reinvented warfare with drones, bringing the fight to the heart of Russia."
He reiterated that Putin continues to carry out his terrorist war against the civilian population of Ukraine, where innocent lives are lost every day, and emphasized that the United States should not extend a helping hand to the Russian war machine.
The Republican politician warned about the strategic consequences of Washington's stance for U.S. national security: "If Putin subjugates Ukraine, it will only be a matter of time before the Russian army crosses a border and our troops will have to confront them."
And he concluded his statement with a direct demand to the president: "You should rescind this agreement immediately, return to the firm policies of our four years in the White House, impose severe sanctions on any nation that purchases Russian energy, and work with our allies to ensure that Ukraine has the military support it needs to repel and defeat this Russian invasion once and for all."
Pence's reaction adds to a bipartisan wave of opposition to the agreement on diesel with Russia: seven senators from both parties—including Republicans Collins, Murkowski, Tillis, and Curtis—demanded that Trump "immediately reverse" the decision.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the agreement as “unfair and dishonest” and referred to it as a “birthday gift” for Putin, also accusing Trump of negotiating with Moscow behind Kiev's back while Ukrainian and American delegations were discussing the war in Miami.
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