Trump says US may ask Europe to release diesel reserves

What the report says

President Donald Trump said the United States may ask European countries to release diesel reserves as Washington seeks ways to ease rising fuel prices tied to the war on Iran. The remarks came on Thursday, after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urged Europe to tap its stocks quickly and share more supply to help address disruptions in the market.

According to Al Jazeera’s report, US officials have been weighing broader steps, including a possible restriction on US diesel exports, as diesel prices climb ahead of the November midterm elections. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said France, Germany and Italy would likely be open to a cooperative approach to get more diesel to market, while Energy Secretary Chris Wright said he was confident Europe could help reduce price pressure by releasing emergency inventories.

The article said European capitals were coordinating responses on the same day, and noted that France and Germany together hold more than a third of the EU’s strategic diesel reserves. The report also cited European Commission data showing record diesel prices in several EU countries, including Italy, Belgium, Romania and Poland. EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic warned that a US export ban would be unexpected and could hurt Europe’s economy. The issue matters because diesel is central to freight, industry and broader inflation pressures in both the US and Europe.