Block the Lukoil Deal — Don't Let Ukraine Peace Talks Become a Kleptocracy Scheme

Demand a full investigation into the Lukoil deal being negotiated alongside Ukraine peace talks, and block any agreement that enriches insiders connected to U.S. negotiators. The New York Times reported that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner — the administration's own envoys — are linked to Middle Eastern business groups pursuing a multibillion-dollar acquisition of Russian energy giant Lukoil's oil fields, refineries, and gas stations. Vladimir Putin himself raised this deal during a September 5 Kremlin meeting with Witkoff and Kushner. That is a staggering conflict of interest at the heart of a war that has cost hundreds of thousands of lives. This is not diplomacy. It is self-dealing dressed up as peacemaking. The people negotiating Ukraine's fate stand to benefit financially from a deal blessed by the Kremlin. That should alarm every American regardless of party. Push for full public disclosure of all financial relationships between U.S. negotiators and parties to this deal, and use every tool available to ensure no sanctions relief or government approval moves forward until those conflicts are resolved. Ukraine deserves a peace process that isn't for sale.