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The United States has renewed its push to restore Russian gas deliveries to Europe through Ukraine as part of negotiations on an energy truce. The proposal resurfaced after Ukraine resumed attacks on Russian oil refineries, The Wall Street Journal reports.
According to sources cited by the newspaper, US President Donald Trump’s special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner raised the idea during visits to Kyiv and Moscow in September.
Their proposal envisages selling Russian gas through a US intermediary, potentially bypassing European sanctions and creating an opportunity for American investors.
However, EU legislation requires all purchases of Russian gas to be phased out by the end of 2027. Leaders of several major European countries have also said they have no interest in restoring dependence on a country they regard as their main strategic threat.
The US plan was put on hold in October after Ukraine unilaterally suspended attacks on Russian oil refineries under pressure from Trump. Moscow, in turn, began supplying diesel fuel to the United States while continuing to strike Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Washington shifted its attention toward the possibility of a broader peace agreement.
However, Ukraine resumed its aerial campaign on Friday, Oct. 30, carrying out three attacks on three major Russian oil refineries over three days. This gave renewed impetus to efforts to negotiate a broader energy truce ahead of trilateral talks involving Ukraine, the United States and Russia expected in mid-November.
Moscow had previously rejected Washington’s attempts to reach such an agreement. US negotiators reportedly believe that restoring Russia’s access to the European natural gas market could provide a powerful incentive for Russian President Vladimir Putin to accept the deal. It would also generate much-needed transit revenue for Kyiv.
White House officials have proposed that proceeds from gas sales to Europe be transferred to an escrow account in a third country, preventing the Kremlin from using the funds to finance the war.
According to a WSJ source, US officials have tried to present the proposal to European leaders as a way to lower energy prices ahead of winter. Europe’s gas reserves are reportedly at their lowest seasonal level in several years.
The United States is also considering the possible reopening of the Nord Stream pipeline as a potentially important part of a broader agreement. The proposed deal would aim not only to end the war in Ukraine but also to resolve longstanding disputes between Russia and Washington’s European allies.
The Trump administration reportedly expects European resistance to renewed Russian gas supplies to be less firm than it initially appears.
However, a senior official from a Scandinavian country said in private conversations that restoring purchases of Russian gas would contradict everything European countries stand for.
Another senior official from a major European country compared the proposal to former British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain’s decision to sacrifice Czechoslovakia to Hitler in exchange for favorable agreements.
Background
Media reports in October also said the Trump administration had urged Ukraine to restore Russian gas transit to Europe as part of a potential peace deal. European officials reportedly reacted negatively to the proposal.
The European Commission has separately stated that Nord Stream will not resume operations after the war in Ukraine. It said the EU would continue moving away from Russian gas regardless of any agreements between Moscow and Washington.
