Trump administration has legal authority for Russian diesel deal, says US Treasury Secretary

US Treasury Secretary Scott Beissinger said today that President Donald Trump's administration will implement the Russian diesel import agreement using its available legal authorities, adding that the deal announced by Trump on Friday serves the interests of the American people.

Beissinger told Reuters, "We will carry out the deal using all legal powers at our disposal. So, anyone in Congress who claims that an old bill or Senator Lindsey Graham's current bill prevents us from doing so is mistaken."

Beissinger added, "This is good for the American people, as it will lead to lower diesel prices."

On Friday, the US president announced an agreement with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin allowing Moscow to immediately release diesel onto global markets.

Trump explained that Putin agreed to release 300,000 tons of diesel immediately, followed by 500,000 tons in November, and an additional one million tons thereafter.

Trump's announcement comes as part of his latest efforts to reduce fuel prices in the US, after months of dealing with the political fallout from the war with Iran, which began last February.