Kremlin advisor: America and Russia are discussing lifting sanctions on the sovereign fund

Official Russian media quoted a Kremlin aide as saying that the Trump administration and the Kremlin are discussing the possibility of lifting US sanctions imposed on the Russian sovereign fund, which is estimated to be worth billions of dollars. This may represent another American concession to Moscow within the framework of negotiations aimed at ending its war in Ukraine. The official Russian news agency TASS and Reuters reported on Wednesday, quoting Yuri Ushakov, Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy aide, as telling reporters that talks with the United States regarding lifting sanctions imposed on the Russian Direct Investment Fund - a state-owned fund - have been "continuing for some time."

Ushakov said that Kirill Dmitriev, the Fund's CEO and presidential envoy, was in extensive contact with US officials about lifting sanctions. The Biden administration imposed the sanctions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, describing them as a known "black box" for Putin and his inner circle.

Ofoq News reached out to the White House and the US State Department for comment. The New York Times reported in a report on Tuesday that the Trump administration is considering lifting sanctions.

President Donald Trump defended recent concessions he made to Russia on sanctions, a move that sparked bipartisan criticism in Washington and caused a rift between the United States and its Western allies. Earlier this month, Trump announced an agreement allowing the export of Russian diesel to global energy markets, and also canceled an additional set of sanctions related to Russian fossil fuel sales, sanctions that had been passed into law shortly before.

The blocked legislation would have imposed tariffs of up to 100% on goods coming into the United States among other countries from the top five importers of Russian crude oil or gas, sales critical to financing the Kremlin's war machine. The agreement between the United States and Russia regarding diesel includes suspending sanctions imposed on fuel exports for a period of six months, in order to allow the sale of diesel at market prices. However, experts expressed doubts about the impact this might have on global diesel markets.

Russia banned diesel exports in early July, after Ukrainian drone attacks targeting Russian refineries caused widespread fuel shortages across the country. The White House is seeking to ease pressure on oil and diesel prices in the United States ahead of the crucial midterm elections that will be held next week.

Trump also stated that his decision to lift some sanctions on Russia was aimed at keeping Moscow at the negotiating table. He wrote on Truth Social on October 18: “I am in the process of negotiating peace in the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, and I do not want to do anything that would foolishly push Russia away from the negotiating table.”

Trump held Ukraine responsible for the rise in global fuel prices, and exerted intense pressure on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to stop attacks on Russian oil refineries, at a time when Russia continues its attacks on Ukrainian towns and cities and on the energy infrastructure in Ukraine. There is growing concern in Kiev and Europe that the Trump administration will make additional concessions to Moscow, in an effort to push Putin to agree to a peace agreement.

Zelensky recently told NBC's "Meet the Press" that these exceptions strengthened Putin's war against Ukraine, at a time when Moscow was facing failures on the battlefield. Kyiv has long called for tougher sanctions on Russian energy exports.

Last week, Putin said that the Kremlin would be ready to resume trilateral peace talks between Russia, the United States and Ukraine after mid-November, at the request of US special envoy Steve Witkov, who met with the Russian leader in St. Petersburg. During the talks, Putin expressed interest in restoring economic cooperation with the United States.