Trump’s Putin Outreach Risks Backfiring Before Midterms

President Donald Trump is pursuing a deal with Russia to ease US fuel prices ahead of the November 3 midterm elections, but his outreach to Vladimir Putin has drawn bipartisan criticism and raised doubts about Moscow's willingness to compromise on Ukraine. Trump eased restrictions on Russian diesel imports and his envoy Steve Witkoff met Putin in St Petersburg on October 21, coinciding with an American prisoner's release. However, no breakthrough on ending the war was confirmed, and Russian officials dismissed the talks as containing "little of actual value." The diesel deal has not lowered prices, with average US diesel rising from $6.26 to $6.30 per gallon since the announcement. Republican lawmakers have condemned Witkoff's praise of Putin, while Democrats are weighing conditions on future defense funding for Ukraine.