Brussels (Belgium) (AFP) – The EU "categorically" rejected this Friday Washington's threat to ban diesel exports to Europe and called for a coordinated response to rising prices.

First modification: 02/10/2026 - 13:50

To relieve the market, the US administration is pressuring Europe to draw on its emergency diesel reserves and even threatens to ban its fuel exports to the EU if it refuses.

But such a ban "would damage our confidence in the United States as a reliable partner," warned a European Commission spokeswoman, Anna-Kaisa Itkonen.

The EU is, however, "willing to take collective action" with the International Energy Agency to decide whether or not to resort to the strategic reserves of the States, as was done last March.

On Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron spoke by phone with his American counterpart Donald Trump and told him that "the G7 countries had a common interest in acting in a coordinated manner, without restrictions on exports," the Elysée said.

Macron, who also spoke with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, wants to convene a video conference of G7 leaders as soon as possible to ensure coordination on this issue, the French presidency added.

For his part, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in X that his "European partners should accelerate the implementation of their current commitments and immediately make additional volumes available to alleviate current disruptions."

And on Wednesday, Trump hinted that he might even ban U.S. diesel exports.

The interruption of US supplies would have major consequences for the EU, since 50% of the diesel imported by the Twenty-seven countries of the bloc comes from the United States.

Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy infrastructure and Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz are affecting diesel production, although refineries in other parts of the world are operating normally.

© 2026 AFP

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