Because of Putin: Republicans write protest letter to Trump
Six US senators from the Republican ranks around Donald Trump, together with six Democrats, are calling on the US President to end the diesel agreement with Russia. The move marks a departure from the Republicans’ almost unconditional support for Trump’s foreign policy decisions.
A letter from the twelve politicians published on Tuesday said that the diesel agreement would give Russia more fuel to finance its war against Ukraine and would not benefit US citizens. “Allowing Moscow to freely sell Russian diesel on global markets harms U.S. security interests and is a betrayal of the Ukrainian people, who continue to defend themselves against Vladimir Putin’s murderous, illegal war,” it said. The agreement is a gift to an enemy and a betrayal of allies. It must be reversed. Trump, who recently announced the agreement after a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, dodged the question on Tuesday of whether Russia could use the proceeds from the deal to buy more bombs.
In addition to the leading Republican Mitch McConnell, the signatories of the letter include five other Trump colleagues and six Democrats. The contradiction comes three weeks before the midterm elections on November 3rd, which will decide the majority in Congress. On Sunday, three Republican senators – Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and Thom Tillis – called for a reversal in a joint statement with Democrats. The agreement runs counter to a US law that bans energy imports until Russia ends its aggression against Ukraine.
