John Kennedy says he does not support importing diesel "from Putin"
John KennedyU.S. Senator from Louisiana, speaking to reporters at a campaign appearance in Michigan, as reported by The Hill
Sen. John Kennedy said he supported the president's decision but did not support importing diesel from Putin, whom he called a butcher of his own people and of Ukrainians, and said the president is doing everything he can to get diesel prices down.
“support his decision to import it from Putin. Vladimir Putin is a butcher. He’s a butcher of his own people. And he’s a butcher of the good people of Ukraine.”
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Should the U.S. lift sanctions on Russian diesel to bring down fuel prices?
On October 9, 2026, President Donald Trump said that after a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russia would supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel immediately and up to 4.8 million tons in all to the American and global markets, and that diesel prices would come down. The same day, the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control issued General License 135, which authorizes the sale, delivery and importation of Russian-origin diesel until April 7, 2027. The U.S. has not imported Russian oil or gas since 2022. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said easing sanctions without a de-escalation agreement plays into Russia's hands, and lawmakers in both parties said the arrangement would fund Russia's war in Ukraine. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick said he would introduce a bill to block all purchases of Russian oil and force a vote by discharge petition. The dispute is over whether the U.S. should ease sanctions on Russian diesel to lower fuel prices.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
The Hill report on Republican objections to the diesel arrangement. It quotes Kennedy and Rogers from a Friday campaign appearance in Michigan, where a reporter asked about the deal.
Before the quotation
The Hill's report, dated October 10, said that when asked about the deal on Friday, Kennedy said he supported the president's decision but did not support importing the diesel from Putin.
After the quotation
Kennedy continued that Putin "will never be our friend" and said an end to the war in Iran would bring diesel prices down.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The case asks whether the U.S. should ease sanctions on Russian diesel to lower fuel prices, as the administration did on October 9. The Hill reports that Kennedy does not "support his decision to import it from Putin" and calls Putin "a butcher". That opposes the Russian supply, so we labeled it Condemned. The closest competing label is Mixed or conditional, since The Hill reports that he supported the president's decision and he says the president is "doing everything he can to get diesel prices down"; it loses because what he backs is the aim of lower prices, not the Russian diesel.
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The Dispute Index. "John Kennedy says he does not support importing diesel "from Putin"". First published: 2026-10-11. Last updated: 2026-10-11. https://disputeindex.com/events/5483-sen-john-kennedy-said-he-supported-the-president