Russian diesel tankers head for North America as Trump revives Ukraine peace efforts

Russian diesel tankers are heading for North America as part of an agreement announced by US president Donald Trump this month. The deal allows Russian companies to supply 500,000 metric tonnes of fuel to US and global markets in October in exchange for temporarily lifting US sanctions on Russian fuel. The first three tankers, carrying Russian diesel, are already on their way to the eastern coast of the Atlantic Ocean, with significant support from the RDIF (Russian Direct Investment Fund). One of the tankers, the Malta-flagged medium-sized tanker Agioi Fanendes, is loaded with ultra-low sulphur diesel and is expected to reach the United States on 7 November.

The White House said Russia and Ukraine have agreed to a ceasefire in the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky, where a worsening humanitarian crisis has left thousands of civilians struggling to survive. The ceasefire would allow aid to be delivered and preparations to be made for evacuating civilians starting on 27 October. The ceasefire comes as the United States works to organise fresh talks aimed at ending the war. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said negotiators from Ukraine, Russia, and the US have agreed to hold technical-level meetings in the first half of November in Abu Dhabi.

A US official later said the three countries might meet again in a couple of weeks, in either Abu Dhabi or Switzerland. Zelenskyy said he hoped a meeting of the countries' leaders would follow. The diplomatic push follows a rift between Washington and Kyiv in recent weeks, along with a series of Trump moves seen as favouring Russia. These include limits placed on the Starlink communication system that Ukraine uses to defend against incoming attacks.

In Europe, EU leaders pressed the UK's new prime minister, Andy Burnham, at a summit in Brussels to contribute more to Ukraine's defence. The UK government is due to present its first budget under Burnham's leadership next week. EU officials say Canada and Japan should also do more to support Ukraine. The UN nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, said repairs to key power infrastructure near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant have been completed under a temporary ceasefire it brokered.

The work strengthened the plant's connection to its sole remaining external power line, known as Ferosplavna-1, lowering the risk of another loss of off-site electricity at Europe's largest nuclear power station.