U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz joined a series of Trump administration officials who have blamed the Russia-Ukraine War for high diesel prices, pivoting the energy markets conversation away from the war in Iran and the Strait of Hormuz.
“What we’re seeing in the war in Ukraine is that it is spreading to the global economy, and it’s all the more reason that the president wants the war to stop,” Waltz said on Fox News’s Fox News Live.
The network asked Waltz about diesel prices, which hit a record-high average price this week in the U.S., according to AAA, prompting calls for a ban on diesel exports from several GOP politicians. The network asked about rising diesel costs after Waltz spoke about the war in Iran and the volatility in the Strait of Hormuz, prompting Waltz to clarify a distinction.
“I want to be very clear here. That is a separate — it is absolutely an issue, this diesel issue, that powers our tractors, our trucks, and so much of our economy — is separate than what’s happening in the Strait of Hormuz,” Waltz said.
“We’re moving 12 to 15 million barrels a day from our Gulf allies out, almost to pre-war levels,” Waltz said. “That is different than a refinery issue for diesel, and the primary thing that is affecting that is the war between Russia and Ukraine. And that’s why you’ve seen the president call on all sides to stop hitting those refinery capabilities that is affecting global markets on diesel, different than the price of oil.”
In mid-September, Trump urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to halt airstrikes against Russian oil refineries, as several of his administration officials, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, each also sounded the alarm over the war’s effect on diesel prices.
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“Zelensky has to do one thing: He has to stop knocking out diesel fuel in Russia,” Trump said in mid-September. “Let him go after targets, but not diesel fuel, because he’s causing a shortage of diesel fuel. This isn’t done by the Middle East. This is done by what’s happening with Russia and Ukraine.”
Global diesel prices have sat north of $6 recently, causing concern among energy markets. According to AAA, the average price of U.S. diesel sat at about $6.48 per gallon on Saturday, after hitting the highest recorded average price on Tuesday at $6.5276 per gallon.