Putin's envoy: Russia and America will soon announce new joint initiatives

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Kirill Dmitriev, Russian President Vladimir Putin's investment envoy, said on Friday that Moscow and Washington will soon announce new joint initiatives, including nuclear-powered data centres, following the diesel agreement reached last week.

Dmitriev added that US sanctions pose serious obstacles, and criticized the Graham Law, which US President Donald Trump signed last month, describing it as "misleading", which aims to put pressure on Russia's energy revenues through sanctions and customs duties.

He added that the two countries are studying other forms of economic cooperation in the wake of the diesel agreement.

He went on to say, "We are also discussing joint projects in the field of Russian and American data centers, including the use of small-sized nuclear power plants," without providing details.

Dmitriev, a prominent figure in Russian-US talks on ending the war in Ukraine, has long pushed for a range of ambitious potential deals, including in the areas of metals and energy.

The Kremlin expresses its dissatisfaction that the United States has so far linked any such agreements to a peace agreement, which is still a long way off.

But Dmitriev expressed optimism that this situation is changing.

“Naturally, making progress is very difficult,” he told the Russian Energy Week conference in Moscow. “There is resistance, widespread resistance, in fact, from various quarters. However, as the diesel example shows, I think we will soon announce several other important initiatives. The ice is starting to melt, in fact.”

He added, "We are actually implementing projects with the United States of America at this very moment, and we will continue to do so until the special military operation ends," using the term the Kremlin uses to refer to the war in Ukraine.

Dmitriev said that the US Treasury Department asked the Russian sovereign wealth fund, which he heads, to help resolve complex problems related to payments for the diesel deal.

The deal that Trump announced a week ago includes supplying Russian diesel to the American and global markets in order to reduce its price, which is a major priority for the American president before the midterm elections scheduled for next month.