Kemi Badenoch said Ukraine’s freedom is not President Donald Trump’s to bargain away, and that he is wrong to ease sanctions on Russian diesel, wrong to blame President Zelensky for prolonging Putin’s war, and wrong to undermine a nation fighting for its right to exist. The Conservative Party leader and Member of Parliament for North West Essex posted the statement on Sunday as the U.S. Treasury license authorizing Russian diesel transactions remained in effect. No UK government release posted Sunday addresses the license or her post.
“Ukraine’s freedom is not President Trump’s to bargain away. He is wrong to ease sanctions on Russian diesel, wrong to blame President Zelensky for prolonging Putin’s war, and wrong to undermine a nation fighting for its right to exist,” Badenoch wrote Sunday. “Russia is the aggressor. Always has been. Reward Russia, and we should expect to see more aggression, including from other countries. We can also kiss goodbye to any just and lasting peace.” She said Conservatives have stood with Ukraine and that Ukrainians alone have the right to choose their president. The post does not cite a U.S. statute, a UK regulation, or a volume of diesel.
The U.S. license is diesel. The Office of Foreign Assets Control issued General License No. 135 on Oct. 9. The license text authorizes transactions otherwise prohibited by the Russian Harmful Foreign Activities Sanctions Regulations and the Ukraine-/Russia-Related Sanctions Regulations that relate to the sale, delivery, offloading, or importation, including into the United States, of diesel fuel of Russian origin, through 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on April 7, 2027. It does not mention Ukraine, Zelensky, a bargain, or peace terms. Badenoch’s post treats the license as easing sanctions and rewarding the aggressor. The license does not address that reading.
The United States signed a broader sanctions law three weeks earlier. A White House notice said the president signed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 on Sept. 18. The act, H.R. 5334, expands sanctions on Russia. Member releases describe termination conditions that require a presidential certification that Russia has signed a peace agreement accepted by the free and independent Government of Ukraine and has ceased military hostilities and efforts to subvert the Ukrainian government. No such certification appears on a White House page. Badenoch’s post does not cite the act.
The United Kingdom maintains its own ban. GOV.UK guidance states that the UK prohibits the import, acquisition, supply, and delivery of Russian oil and oil products into the UK under Chapter 4I of Part 5 of the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, as amended. The guidance says the measures are intended to weaken Russia’s economic and financial ability to wage war against the people of Ukraine and are aligned with the EU and G7. The ban covers crude and refined products defined by HS codes. Badenoch’s post does not cite the UK regulations. It criticizes the U.S. license.
Badenoch’s statement attributes sole blame to Russia. She said Russia is the aggressor and always has been, and that rewarding Russia should be expected to produce more aggression, including from other countries. She said Conservatives stand with Zelensky because he fights for the survival of his country and his people, not for himself. Those characterizations are hers. The post quotes no Ukrainian or Russian official and names no facility or tonnage.
The OFAC license is the U.S. document that authorizes the diesel transactions. Badenoch’s reading is that the authorization bargains away Ukraine’s freedom and undermines any just and lasting peace. The license text does not mention Ukraine or peace. An Oct. 5 White House fact sheet cited the Russia-Ukraine war as a driver of tight diesel supply and described domestic measures and a European reserve release. It did not announce a sanctions easing or a bargain with Russia.
“Wrong to ease sanctions,” “Russia is the aggressor,” and “Ukraine’s future belongs to Ukrainians” are Badenoch’s. The Oct. 9 U.S. license, the Sept. 18 signing of the Graham Act, the absence of a certification under that act, and the UK oil ban guidance are the documents. The gap is between a Conservative leader saying the U.S. diesel license rewards the aggressor and a license that authorizes defined transactions without addressing Ukraine’s sovereignty or the terms of any peace.