MOSCOW: Russia has dispatched its first tanker carrying 40,000 tonnes of diesel to the United States under an agreement with President Donald Trump, the Kremlin said on Friday, reported German Press Agency (dpa).
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in Moscow that further deliveries would follow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the start of shipments on Wednesday during a meeting with US special envoy Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg.
Russia has not ruled out resuming diesel exports to other countries, although the government says this will depend on the capacity of its refineries.
“We expect to reach full production capacity only towards the end of the year, and then other countries will also be able to receive the volumes they previously received,” Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, who oversees energy policy, said earlier this week.
Trump and Putin agreed earlier this month to allow Russian diesel deliveries to the US, with Washington temporarily suspending existing sanctions against Moscow to facilitate the shipments.
The agreement drew sharp international criticism, including from the European Union, Ukraine, the German government and several members of the US Congress.
Moscow, however, has hailed the deal as a victory amid Ukrainian efforts to deprive Russia of revenue used to finance its war. Putin has also said the agreement would help lower prices on the global market.
Russian oil refineries have frequently been targeted by long-range Ukrainian combat drones, with repair work limiting production capacity and prompting Moscow to impose export bans on petrol and diesel.