MOSCOW -- A Russia-U.S. deal on supplies of Russian diesel can pave the way for further economic co-operation between the two countries, Kremlin envoy Kirill Dmitriev said on Wednesday, adding that Moscow would overcome any sanctions-related difficulties to ensure the fuel was delivered.
U.S. President Donald Trump said last Friday that he and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin had reached an agreement for Russia to release supplies of diesel to the U.S. and global markets.
Trump is keen to lower U.S. diesel prices ahead of November 3 U.S. mid-term elections.
The deal, which required Trump to lift some U.S. sanctions that he himself had imposed against Russia, was strongly criticized by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and European officials.
Dmitriev said the deal could serve as a model for further ones, and that Russia intended to continue its economic engagement with the U.S.
“It’s not just about the diesel deal; there are many other opportunities for economic and investment cooperation with the U.S. that benefit Russia, the United States, and global markets alike,” he told reporters.
The Kremlin has repeatedly said it sees potential for profitable cooperation with the United States across a range of economic areas including energy and minerals, expressing regret that Washington has previously made such deals conditional on ending the war in Ukraine.
Dmitriev said Russia would continue to engage with the U.S. on economic and investment projects and “keep explaining, using concrete examples, that American sanctions primarily hurt the American people and American farmers.”
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Wednesday that the diesel deal was a “very risky choice” that ran counter to efforts to force Putin to sit down and negotiate a peace deal with Ukraine.
(Reporting by Olesya Astakhova, Mikhail Antonov, Vladimir Soldatkin; writing by Alessandra Prentice and Mark Trevelyan; Editing by Jason Neely)
