The briefing for Saturday, October 10.

President Trump announced Friday that he struck a deal with Vladimir Putin for Russia to supply diesel to the US and global markets, a stark reversal of years of sanctions policy. Trump said Russia would immediately release 300,000 tons of diesel, followed by 500,000 tons in November, then additional shipments totaling millions more tons in the months ahead. The US Treasury issued a temporary license suspending sanctions on Russian diesel exports until April 2027, though other frozen Russian assets remain untouched.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky strongly criticized the deal, calling it "a weak decision, unfortunately, a weak decision by strong partners" and warning that Russia would repay it "with further terror and perfidy." He argued the agreement amounts to an investment prolonging the war rather than ending it. The announcement came as Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner were meeting Ukrainian officials in Miami to discuss a war-ending proposal, leading Zelensky to suggest his team was being used "as a smokescreen."

The deal directly contradicts a sweeping Russia sanctions law Trump signed just three weeks ago, which authorized new sanctions and tariffs on nations importing Russian oil and gas. Energy experts are skeptical the move will meaningfully lower US fuel prices, which hit a record $6.53 a gallon for diesel in late September amid the ongoing US-Iran war's disruption to global energy markets. Analysts note that Russia's diesel refining capacity remains damaged by Ukrainian strikes, and the promised volumes amount to roughly half a day's US diesel consumption.

A day after the announcement, Russian strikes killed at least 11 people, including three children, in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region, according to regional officials. The attacks underscore the continuing human toll of the war even as Washington pursues closer energy ties with Moscow. The diesel deal, coming weeks before US midterm elections, highlights the political pressure Trump faces over fuel prices in agricultural swing states like Iowa, Kansas and Ohio, even as it opens him to criticism from European allies that the US is now helping fund Russia's war effort.

The Trump administration unveiled sweeping sanctions against the International Criminal Court as an institution, marking a major escalation beyond its earlier sanctions on 17 individual ICC judges and officials. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the measures, which bar US entities from transacting with the court, are meant to "defend US sovereignty" against an institution he accused of seeking to prosecute Americans. The sanctions include a six-month grace period before fully taking effect, giving member states time to negotiate.

The ICC called the move "an assault on the rule of law" and the foundations of international legal order, vowing it "will not be deterred." UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the sanctions as "a serious blow" to international criminal justice. The UK, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Japan and the Netherlands jointly reaffirmed their support for the court and said they "strongly disagree" with Washington's action.

The announcement came hours after former ICC judge Navi Pillay won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for her work promoting international law, an irony not lost on observers. The Trump administration's anger stems partly from a now-closed ICC investigation into US soldiers in Afghanistan and the court's arrest warrants for Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who welcomed the sanctions. Rubio called on ICC-member allies like the UK to "rein in" the court, while the Netherlands, which hosts the ICC in The Hague, faces particular pressure as a NATO ally.

Legal experts warn the sanctions could cripple the court's ability to function financially, potentially forcing the release of detainees awaiting trial. This marks what observers call the gravest crisis in the ICC's 24-year history, as Washington shifts from targeting individuals to attacking the institution's operational capacity directly.

President Trump established a "committee of inquiry" Friday to investigate allegations that Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook made false statements on mortgage applications, setting up a White House hearing for November 5 that Cook is required to attend. The hearing won't be public, but a transcript will be published afterward. The move represents Trump's latest attempt to remove Cook, whom he first tried to fire in August 2025 over allegations she falsely declared two properties as her "primary" residence.

This marks the first time in the Federal Reserve's 113-year history that a president has sought to remove a sitting governor, raising significant concerns about the central bank's independence. Cook, appointed by President Biden, is the first Black woman to serve on the Fed's board. Her attorneys, Abbe Lowell and Norman Eisen, said she welcomes the chance to "clear her name" and are evaluating whether the process is genuine.

The inquiry committee includes Kevin Hassett, Trump's top economic adviser who has echoed the president's criticism of Fed policy, along with two other Trump appointees. Trump has repeatedly pushed for lower interest rates, but the Fed raised rates last month under Chairman Kevin Warsh, whom Trump himself appointed. The episode adds to a pattern of the administration targeting Black officials, including New York Attorney General Letitia James and former Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Charles Q. Brown.

Ethiopia formally notified the UN Security Council on Friday that it is acting in self-defense against Eritrea, accusing its neighbor of sending troops across the border and occupying parts of northern Ethiopia's Tigray region. Foreign Minister Gedion Timothewos invoked Ethiopia's right to self-defense under the UN Charter, alleging Eritrea deployed infantry and mechanized units while arming insurgent groups, though the letter did not specify what measures Ethiopia is taking or provide supporting evidence.

Eritrea's Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel countered that his country faces "an unprovoked war of aggression," accusing Ethiopia of seeking regime change by supporting opposition groups. The two nations, former allies who fought together against the Tigray People's Liberation Front from 2020 to 2022, severed diplomatic ties last week after Ethiopia expelled Eritrean diplomats. Tensions have grown largely over Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's push for access to a Red Sea port in Eritrea.

Conflict monitors reported Ethiopian drone strikes targeting Eritrean forces in the Tigrayan town of Adigrat this week, with witnesses describing destroyed vehicles and retreating troops, though casualties remain unconfirmed. Government-allied forces have also made territorial gains in Tigray, taking the towns of Idaga Hamus and Abiy-Adi after the TPLF withdrew from the regional capital Mekelle on October 3.

The escalation raises fears of a broader regional war in an area still recovering from a previous conflict that researchers estimate killed roughly 500,000 civilians in Tigray through violence, famine and collapsed health services. The TPLF's recent alliance with six other opposition groups seeking to oust Abiy has further destabilized the fragile 2022 peace agreement that ended that war.

The Justice Department announced Friday it will no longer enforce federal registration requirements for firearm suppressors, short-barreled rifles and certain other weapons nationwide, following an August court ruling. A Texas federal judge found the permitting process under the 1930s-era National Firearms Act unconstitutional after Congress and Trump eliminated the $200 permit tax on such devices. The Justice Department chose not to appeal that ruling.

ATF Director Rob Cekada said the agency decided to apply the policy nationally to avoid a "confusing patchwork" of enforcement across states, rather than limiting the change to the original Texas case. Under the new guidance, registration will still apply in roughly 15 states with their own laws requiring the federal permitting process, and buyers must still complete standard background checks. Registration requirements remain in place for machine guns and other devices classified as "destructive devices."

Gun rights groups have long criticized the registration process as burdensome, requiring fingerprinting and government approval. Groups supporting gun restrictions called the policy shift reckless, arguing the rules serve an important public safety function. The move continues a broader pattern of the Trump administration easing firearm restrictions opposed by gun control advocates.

A former Ukrainian Special Forces soldier identified as Serhii K is set to go on trial in Hamburg next week, charged with masterminding the September 2022 explosions that destroyed the Nord Stream pipelines beneath the Baltic Sea. German prosecutors allege he commanded a team of deep-sea divers who planted high-performance explosives roughly 80 meters below the surface using a rented yacht. He faces charges of causing an explosion and a war crime for attacking civilian infrastructure, allegedly on behalf of Ukrainian state agencies.

German investigators spent years following forensic evidence that initially led many governments to suspect Russian involvement, given Moscow's history of energy-related hybrid attacks. Instead, the trail eventually pointed to Ukraine, with prosecutors alleging the suspect entered Germany using a forged passport likely issued by Ukraine's security services. He was arrested in Italy in August 2025 while vacationing with his family, after evading detection during more than a year of international travel.

Both Serhii K and the Ukrainian government have denied any involvement in the attack, which knocked out roughly half of Germany's annual natural gas supply and has remained inoperable since. The case represents the most detailed legal proceeding to date directly tying the historic act of sabotage to Ukraine, carrying significant diplomatic weight as it unfolds alongside ongoing peace negotiations over the broader Russia-Ukraine war.