President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order setting, but immediately waiving, sweeping new tariffs and sanctions against Russia, a week after announcing an agreement with Moscow to increase Russian diesel supplies.
The order that Trump signed both created and then blocked a 500 percent tariff on Russian goods and a potential 100 percent tariff against major buyers of Russian oil and gas and countries that help Russia evade oil sanctions.
“I have submitted to the Congress a certification that the issuance of such a waiver at this time is in the national interests of the United States,” Trump's order states.
The Friday order implements the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, which Trump signed into law on September 18. The legislation expanded U.S. sanctions and tariff authorities against Russia, particularly measures targeting its energy trade.
His order comes a week after an October 9 diesel agreement with Russia in which Moscow would make additional supplies available to U.S. and global markets. The Treasury then issued temporary relief covering certain Russian-origin diesel transactions.
What Trump's Russia Order Does
The legislation was designed to put economic pressure not only on Moscow but also on countries that continue to support its energy exports. Congress included provisions covering sanctions on Russian officials, financial institutions and state-controlled entities, restrictions involving Russia's energy sector and increased duties on Russian goods.
The underlying law also extends the Iran Sanctions Act. The White House said when Trump signed the legislation that it both expanded measures against Russia and extended existing sanctions on Iran.
Why Trump Waived the New Tariffs
Trump's order says he determined that temporarily waiving the measures is in the national interest and submitted the required certification and supporting report to Congress.
A legal analysis published after the law's enactment said it provides the president with substantial flexibility, including authority over tariffs targeting major purchasers of Russian-origin oil or natural gas and countries facilitating Russian oil sanctions evasion.
The executive order says the waivers will continue until Trump, or the secretary of state in consultation with other administration officials, determine that further action should be taken.
The order also makes clear that the waiver does not undo Russian sanctions already imposed under earlier executive orders.
Countries Buying Russian Energy Could Face 100% Tariffs
The order potentially puts some of Russia's largest energy customers in the administration's crosshairs.
If the waiver is lifted, new Russian energy purchases made on or after October 18, could face a 100 percent tariff on goods. It provides separately for 100 percent duties on goods from the five countries deemed the largest facilitators of Russian oil sanctions evasion, again subject to the waiver.
The legislation enacted by Congress authorized tariffs of up to 100 percent on goods from covered countries purchasing Russian energy and created a similar mechanism aimed at countries that aid in evading sanctions.
The executive order does not itself identify the countries that would be subject to those measures. Instead, it instructs administration officials to monitor Russian energy purchases and sanctions-evasion activity and report their findings to the president.
Trump’s Russian Diesel Deal
Friday’s move comes one week after Trump announced an agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin to increase supplies of Russian diesel to U.S. and global markets.
Trump said he made the Russian diesel deal to bring costs down.
“We need oil for the world, and this is diesel, which is what we need, so we're very happy to get it,” Trump told reporters the day the deal announced.
But the agreement drew criticism from lawmakers who questioned how easing restrictions on Russian energy squared with Congress’ recent push to increase economic pressure on Moscow.
Republican Texas Representative Michael McCaul said on X that he understood “the desire to bring down diesel prices” but was concerned that lifting sanctions on Russian oil would “only fund the Kremlin's war machine.”
The executive order issued Friday does not specifically mention diesel, and there is no stated causal connection between the diesel agreement and the broader waivers.
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here. Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Anna Commander and Edward T. Cummins