Russia has partially lifted its ban on diesel exports with immediate effect, clearing 500,000 metric tons of fuel for international markets after President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump agreed on Friday that Russia would supply the United States and global buyers, according to a Russian government statement issued on Saturday, with the partial lifting taking effect immediately.

In effect, Moscow has turned on the diesel tap, but only partway — and on its own schedule rather than the one Trump announced on Friday.

Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said Russian production is sufficient to cover domestic demand in full while also supporting exports at the agreed volumes. Russian oil companies will begin negotiating export contracts with foreign buyers straight away, working in coordination with the government. The government gave no shipping timeline and did not say whether further volumes would be approved.

The decision partly reverses the restrictions Moscow imposed this year. Russia first barred diesel exports by non-producers on January 31 to protect domestic supply and widened the ban to producers on July 9. Novak's assurance on domestic availability is notable, given that the restrictions were introduced precisely because home supply was under strain.

The volume released is smaller and less defined than the schedule Trump set out. He said Russia would supply more than 300,000 tons immediately, 500,000 tons in November, 1 million tons after that, and a further 3 million tons later — a total of roughly 4.8 million tons. The Russian statement covers only 500,000 tons, provides no shipping dates, and does not say whether additional tranches will be authorized. At a standard conversion, 500,000 tons equates to roughly 3.7 million barrels, well short of the roughly 4.8 million tons Trump outlined. The gap underscores that Moscow intends to control the pace of any export resumption, the report indicated.

For the oil product market, the immediate volume is modest, small against the global diesel trade that keeps trucks, farms, and factories running, so the price effect rests more on what follows than on this tranche. The signal matters more for middle distillate margins — the refining spread on diesel-class fuels — as a Russian return to export markets, alongside a pause in Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries, would ease one of the tighter corners of the fuel market, the report noted.

The move comes alongside Trump's announcement on Sunday of an energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, which Kyiv said it supports, as detailed in a separate update. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had earlier offered to halt attacks on Russian diesel facilities if Moscow stopped its own strikes — a trade that, if it holds, could also ease pressure on Russian refining capacity.

The reversal sits awkwardly with the sweeping sanctions law Trump signed last month targeting Russian oil and gas revenues. Buyers may move cautiously, since the measures remain in force and contract terms remain unclear. Whether further export tranches follow, and how buyers weigh sanctions risk when negotiating contracts, will determine how much Russian diesel actually reaches global markets in the weeks ahead. Any confirmation of further tranches, the report added, would add downside pressure to diesel cracks — the refining margin for the fuel — in Europe and Asia.