Oil and gas prices rose Monday after an \u201cenergy ceasefire\u201d announced by President Donald Trump on Sunday failed to gain traction.<\/p>\n
Brent crude oil jumped 2% to almost $108 per barrel and U.S. crude oil rose more than 2% to about $94. Meanwhile, diesel futures fully erased a small drop they saw last week.<\/p>\n
Just weeks out from the Nov. 3 midterm elections, the price pressures are mounting. Republicans face a steep climb to maintain their majorities in Congress, and voters across the country cite high gas prices as a key issue affecting their votes.<\/p>\n
The average nationwide price of diesel fuel Monday was $6.26 per gallon, nearly 80% higher than it had been at the start of the year, according to AAA data.<\/p>\n
The rising prices Monday came less than 24 hours after Trump declared that a ceasefire had been agreed to. <\/p>\n
\u201cEffective immediately, there is an ENERGY CEASEFIRE in the War between Russia and Ukraine. Both parties have agreed. Do not break it!\u201d Trump wrote on Truth Social<\/a>.<\/p>\n Shortly after the president\u2019s post, Russia renewed strikes against Ukrainian energy assets. <\/p>\n Pressed by reporters Monday as to why neither the Kremlin nor Kyiv had firmly committed to his ceasefire, Trump indicated that he knew when he made the announcement on Sunday that he did not yet have a commitment from either side.<\/p>\n \u201cThey agreed, you know why? Because I said \u2018You agree,\u201d Trump told reporters at the White House. As for getting Russian President Vladimir Putin to commit, Trump said, \u201cWe\u2019re going to see what happens.\u201d <\/p>\n Asked if he was aware that Russia had already violated the ceasefire Trump had announced, the president replied, \u201cI\u2019m not sure about that,\u201d before claiming there had been \u201cviolations on both sides.\u201d <\/p>\n Ceasefire d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu<\/p>\n President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine learned about Trump\u2019s ceasefire from media reports and was given no advance warning. He reiterated his position that Ukraine was open to an agreement not to target enemy energy infrastructure as long as Moscow agrees to it, too.<\/p>\n In the meantime, Russia continued with \u201cglide bomb strikes and strikes on our energy infrastructure,\u201d Zelenskyy said Monday, noting that a power plant in Kharkiv had recently been attacked.<\/p>\n \u201cUkraine has proposed many de-escalatory steps. Putin had one answer to all of them \u2014 \u2018nyet,\u2019\u201d Zelenskyy said, using the Russian word for \u201cno.\u201d <\/p>\n The Kremlin on Monday neither confirmed nor denied having agreed to a deal.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s Sunday announcement closely mirrored a similar post <\/a>he made in September, when he announced that \u201cUkraine has agreed not to hit Russian Energy targets. Russia has agreed to do, likewise!\u201d<\/p>\n There, too, Zelenskyy said Ukraine\u2019s participation hinged on Russia\u2019s agreement to comply, which never came. Neither Ukrainian nor Russian strikes on the other\u2019s energy assets slowed down in September.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s deal with Putin<\/p>\n The dubious ceasefire Trump declared over the weekend followed a stunning announcement Friday<\/a> in which the president said Russia would supply millions of barrels of diesel \u201cto the American and Global Marketplace.\u201d <\/p>\n The announcement came after a phone call Friday between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin<\/a> that reportedly lasted over an hour. <\/p>\n Trump said the deal with Putin would \u201cimmediately supply over 300,000 Tons of Diesel Fuel to the American and Global Marketplace.\u201d That would translate into about 2.25 million barrels of diesel, or less diesel than the United States uses in just one day. <\/p>\n Further details and logistics of Russia\u2019s plan had yet to be announced Monday.<\/p>\n In addition to the Russia deal, Trump has pressured G7 allies to release more diesel fuel <\/a>supplies in recent days and lifted domestic restrictions on an off-road variety<\/a> of diesel.<\/p>\n In order to clear a legal path for the diesel deal, the Treasury Department announced a six-month suspension of the fuel sanctions<\/a> imposed on the Kremlin in 2022 for its illegal invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n Ukrainian officials, European allies and some U.S. lawmakers were aghast<\/a> at the deal and the U.S. decision to unilaterally ease Russia sanctions. <\/p>\n