New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill is threatening to block Russian diesel shipments from entering the Port of New York and New Jersey ahead of the arrival of three tankers carrying roughly 140,000 metric tons of the fuel. The vessels—including one blacklisted by the US and another sanctioned by the EU, UK and Canada—are scheduled to reach American ports days after the Nov 3 midterm elections, with the first 40,000-ton cargo on the Malta-flagged Agioi Fanendes due Nov 7.

The threat compounds resistance from US oil companies, which are refusing private pressure from Trump administration officials to buy the discounted cargoes as they cross the Atlantic. None of the tankers had secured buyers when they loaded following President Donald Trump’s Oct 16 executive order waiving sanctions on Russian diesel through April 7, 2027, and the Agioi Fanendes has since dropped New York as its listed destination in favor of the broader Atlantic coast.