Rubio explains Trump's decision to suspend Russia sanctions and defends diesel deal

On Oct. 17, Rubio said Trump would spend 60 days assessing the economic impact of sanctions and tariffs related to Russia that he had suspended the previous day.

"Many of you don't yet know what decision I've made, but we'll figure it out, and you'll find out too," Donald Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida.

With only weeks remaining before the U.S. midterm elections, Trump is facing pressure over high energy prices and the war with Iran, which has disrupted global oil supplies, Reuters reported.

Trump signed an executive order suspending sanctions and tariffs under the so-called Graham Act. The U.S. president signed the legislation into law last month at the urging of lawmakers seeking to pressure Russia over its war against Ukraine.

The executive order did not specify how long the tariff suspension would last, but Rubio said the administration would review the issue over a 60-day period.

"I think the president wants to use the 60-day period to analyze what imposing sanctions and tariffs would mean for the global economy and the U.S. economy," the secretary of state said.

Rubio also defended a separate agreement between the United States and Russia aimed at increasing diesel fuel supplies to global markets.

He said the diesel fuel would be sold one way or another.

"The only difference is how much of it ends up in the United States," the U.S. secretary of state said.

Rubio also said the diesel agreement and the lifting of sanctions restrictions reflected the complexity of resolving conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, which have disrupted global energy supplies. He emphasized that conflicts erupting in different parts of the world were beginning to intersect.

On Oct. 9, the U.S. president reached an agreement with Vladimir Putin during a phone call on the supply of hundreds of thousands of metric tons of Russian diesel fuel to U.S. and global markets. Trump said the move was intended to help lower prices.

On Oct. 16, Trump suspended the implementation of sanctions against the largest buyers of Russian oil and gas under legislation championed by Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham. The U.S. president justified the decision by citing "U.S. national interests."

Trump's announcement came after he signed HR 5334, the Lindsey O. Graham Russia and Iran Sanctions Act of 2026, into law on Sept. 18. The legislation, co-sponsored by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, provides for expanded sanctions against Russian officials, banks and vessels involved in circumventing restrictions on Russian energy trade, as well as a ban on new U.S. investments in Russia and purchases of Russian sovereign debt.