Senator Demands Russian Diesel Tanker Reverse Course as Legal Fight Escalates

A Malta-flagged tanker carrying nearly 40,000 metric tons of Russian diesel is steaming toward the Port of New York and New Jersey with a November 7 arrival date — and a U.S. senator is demanding it turn around before it gets there.

Senator Richard Blumenthal, Democrat of Connecticut, wrote to Greek shipowner Eastern Mediterranean Maritime Limited (EASTMED) on October 27, calling on the company to recall the Agioi Fanendes, which loaded ultra-low-sulfur diesel at Russia's Baltic port of Primorsk on October 22. The demand escalates a constitutional standoff over President Donald Trump's agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin to resume Russian diesel exports to the United States.

"Should you confirm that this vessel intends to offload Russian diesel fuel at the Port of New York and New Jersey – or any other destination in the United States – we demand that you recall the Agioi Fanendes and to refrain from future transactions in Russian diesel in accordance with U.S. law," Blumenthal wrote to EASTMED Managing Director Athanasios J. Martinos.

What law does the senator say was broken?

Congress passed the Ending Importation of Russian Oil Act in 2022 after Russia invaded Ukraine. The statute prohibits imports of Russian-origin petroleum products, diesel included. The complication: the Trump administration issued Treasury General License 135, authorizing transactions involving Russian diesel through April 7, 2027.

Blumenthal argues a license cannot override a statute. "We recognize that the Treasury Department issued General License No. 135 which reports to authorize transactions for Russia's diesel exports, but no such license can supersede clear, unambiguous law," he wrote. "The President may have given a license to facilitate this transaction, but only Congress can make it legally valid."

The Treasury Department maintains the arrangement is legal. The White House defends the agreement as a measure to ease fuel costs amid supply disruptions caused by the war with Iran. Notably, neither agency has addressed the senator's core claim that executive licensing power cannot waive a statutory import ban.

Who else is being drawn in?

Blumenthal's letter does not stop at the shipowner. He gave EASTMED an October 31 deadline to identify:

• the cargo's seller and purchaser
• the charterer
• the insurer or protection and indemnity (P&I) provider
• the terminal operator
• any entity responsible for distribution

The senator also wants to know whether the company received instructions from the Treasury Department or any other federal agency regarding the shipment.

That inquiry extends congressional scrutiny beyond the companies buying or importing Russian fuel to the shipowners, insurers and other maritime service providers moving it. The exposure is no longer confined to traders; it now reaches the entire transport chain, from P&I clubs to terminal operators.

The October 27 letter follows an October 24 appeal from a bipartisan group of six senators and one House member, who urged major U.S. banks and port authorities — specifically in Texas and New York — to avoid facilitating Russian diesel imports. That letter asked financial institutions and port authorities to preserve shipping documents, contracts and communications with government officials, and warned that participants in the trade could face future congressional investigations.

How big is the trade?

The Agioi Fanendes is among the first cargoes moving under Trump's October 9 agreement with Putin, intended to increase diesel supplies and ease soaring fuel prices. Russia committed to supplying an initial 300,000 metric tons of diesel, followed by another 500,000 tons in November and 1 million tons thereafter — roughly 1.8 million tons in total across the first phases.

Reuters reported on October 23 that the tanker had loaded approximately 40,000 metric tons of ultra-low-sulfur diesel at Primorsk, citing LSEG shipping data. The identities of the buyer and seller were not immediately known — an opacity that itself raises compliance questions for banks and insurers now being asked to document the trade.

For shipowners and maritime service providers, the congressional pressure adds another layer of uncertainty to a trade the administration has moved to reopen. Treasury has authorized qualifying transactions, but lawmakers warn participants could still face legal challenges over shipments they contend violate the 2022 import ban. In a separate public statement, Blumenthal said he was sending a "sledgehammer message" to shipping companies, warning: "Reverse course while there's still time," and adding that the administration's license would not absolve companies of legal or moral accountability.

Whether those warnings alter the Agioi Fanendes' planned voyage to New York remains unclear — and with the October 31 response deadline falling a week before the tanker's expected arrival, the answer may come at the pier.