WASHINGTON/VIENNA — The Trump administration is pursuing a proposal to resume Russian natural gas exports to Europe through Ukrainian territory, using a U.S. intermediary and escrow accounts to circumvent sanctions, according to reports and officials familiar with the matter.
The plan, floated by envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff during September visits to Moscow and Kyiv, would deposit Russian gas-sale proceeds into escrow accounts in third-party jurisdictions, preventing the Kremlin from using the funds to finance its war in Ukraine. The envoys pitched the proposal as a way to coax Putin into an energy ceasefire ahead of winter, offering the Russian leader financial incentives while allowing Ukraine to collect transit fees and providing U.S. investors a role in the trade.
The initiative represents a sharp reversal from Trump's previous position. Having once condemned Germany's Nord Stream 2 pipeline as making Berlin 'captive to Russia' and imposing sanctions on the project in 2019, the administration now views renewed Russian gas exports as a possible key to a peace deal. A previous energy ceasefire brokered by Trump collapsed after Russia ignored it and continued attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure. Despite pressure from Trump, Ukraine resumed its own strikes on Russian plants, and the renewed strikes have added urgency to efforts to secure an energy ceasefire before planned talks between the U.S., Russia and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi in mid-November.
The plan faces strong opposition from European officials. One senior Nordic official told the Wall Street Journal that restarting Russian gas purchases would contradict everything Europe stands for, while another compared the proposal to Neville Chamberlain's appeasement of Adolf Hitler. The EU requires Russian natural-gas imports to be phased out by the end of 2027, and EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen has called for a permanent ban, stating, 'I certainly would not trust Russia.'
Kremlin officials have stated that resuming Russian gas transit via Ukraine is impossible for now. The proposal could give Putin a powerful financial incentive to stop attacking energy infrastructure, though it would also undermine Europe's efforts to break free from Russian energy after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. The conflicts have contributed to globally spiking fuel prices, with the average U.S. gas price at $4.17 a gallon and diesel at $6.29, and the EU attributing an additional 100 billion euros — around $112 billion — to its energy bill due to the Iran conflict.
The White House has been contacted for comment.
