Postwar commerce between Washington and Moscow, from Sakhalin-1 oil to Lukoil’s foreign assets, has been floated as an incentive for peace in Ukraine, an October 27, 2026 Financial Times story reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Those ideas did not appear overnight. This US Russia business deals timeline traces them back to early 2025, dating each proposal, envoy visit and sanctions step from the public record.
The US official quoted by the FT said economic agreements “would be included in and subject to a comprehensive peace framework that stops the killing in this brutal war; nothing is finalised.” On the company side, Exxon’s position, as the FT recorded it from last year, is that it seeks compensation for the Sakhalin-1 stake Russia took, with no plan to operate there again. It did not immediately reply to the FT this time. Boeing, linked to the titanium idea, gave no comment. The Kremlin’s spokesman did not answer the FT, and Dmitriev’s office would not comment.
Where it stands: On Oct. 23 Peskov told reporters the next three-way round with Ukraine would be held in Abu Dhabi in the first half of next month. As of October 28, no signed US-Russia business agreement had been reported.
What does the US Russia business deals timeline show?
The proposals came in waves tied to diplomatic meetings: the 2025 summit season, the late-2025 peace draft, a February 2026 pitch, and a burst of moves in September and October 2026. The table lists the main dated events and the outlet or agency behind each; links are in the Sources list.
| Date | Event | Reported by |
|---|---|---|
| Feb 2025 | Trump posts about “major Economic Development transactions” with Russia | MS NOW |
| Apr 20, 2025 | Trump says both countries would then do “big business” with the US | Kyiv Independent |
| Early Aug 2025 | Witkoff in Moscow; officials discuss Exxon re-entering Sakhalin-1 | Reuters |
| Aug 15, 2025 | Alaska summit; Putin decree on regaining Sakhalin-1 shares | Reuters |
| Late Oct 2025 | Witkoff, Kushner, Dmitriev meet in Miami; 28-point plan follows | Reuters |
| Oct 22, 2025 | Treasury designates Rosneft and Lukoil | Treasury |
| Feb 2026 | Zelensky discloses a “Dmitriev package”; Peskov confirms offers | Kyiv Independent |
| Feb 18, 2026 | Dmitriev puts potential projects above $14 trillion | Kyiv Independent |
| Mar 2026 | Peskov objects to US linking deals to Ukraine | Kyiv Independent |
| Sept 5, 2026 | Witkoff and Kushner meet Putin, Kremlin, Moscow | ABC News |
| Oct 3, 2026 | NYT: talks include a Lukoil assets deal | NYT via Reuters |
| Oct 8, 2026 | Reuters: US investor for Nord Stream discussed | Reuters |
| Oct 9, 2026 | Trump announces Russian diesel deal after Putin call | CNBC |
| Oct 16, 2026 | EO 14436 waives Graham Act Russia measures | White House |
| Oct 21, 2026 | Witkoff meets Putin, Constantine Palace, St Petersburg | Al Jazeera |
| Oct 27, 2026 | FT report on postwar deals; NYT on RDIF delisting review | FT; NYT |
| Nov 2026 | Trilateral round planned in Abu Dhabi | Peskov, Zelensky |
When did talk of US-Russia business deals begin?
It began within weeks of Trump’s return to office. In February 2025 he wrote on Truth Social that he was in “serious discussions” with Putin about the war “and also major Economic Development transactions which will take place between the United States and Russia,” MS NOW recalled.
In a social media post on April 20 that year, he predicted that once Russia and Ukraine made a deal, “Both will then start to do big business with the United States of America, which is thriving, and make a fortune.”
The first specific project surfaced in August. Reuters reported that during Witkoff’s Moscow trip that month, officials discussed “the possibility of Exxon Mobil XOM.N re-entering Russia’s Sakhalin-1 oil and gas project.” On the day of the Alaska summit, Putin signed a decree letting foreign investors regain Sakhalin-1 shares, conditional on their backing the removal of Western sanctions.
One Reuters source described the White House’s thinking: “The White House really wanted to put out a headline after the Alaska summit, announcing a big investment deal.”
How did the 28-point plan and the $14 trillion pitch fit in?
The late-2025 peace draft wrote business ideas into a formal framework, and Moscow later attached a headline number to them. Reuters reported that a Miami meeting at the end of October 2025 between Witkoff, Kushner and Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), “resulted in a 28-point plan for ending the war.”
In the same month, Washington moved the other way on sanctions. Treasury designated Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia’s “two largest oil companies,” on Oct. 22, 2025.
In February 2026, Zelensky said intelligence had shown him a “Dmitriev package” amounting to “around $12 trillion.” Peskov replied: “Of course, we are offering cooperation.” On Feb. 18, Dmitriev said joint projects could be worth “more than $14 trillion” if Washington lifted sanctions. They are his own numbers rather than any outside estimate; see our Dmitriev figure fact check.
By late March the Kremlin was complaining about US conditions. “The U.S. side is linking the entire situation to the resolution of the conflict in Ukraine,” Peskov said, while Dmitriev insisted everything would be done “only on Russia’s terms.”
What happened at the Moscow and St Petersburg meetings?
Witkoff met Putin twice this autumn, first in Moscow on Sept. 5 and then in St Petersburg on Oct. 21. The FT’s article text reverses those venues, but ABC News, Al Jazeera and the FT’s own photo caption support the order used here.
ABC News dated the Kremlin session in Moscow to “September 5, 2026” and said it ran about three hours, with Kushner present. Citing people familiar with it, the NYT later reported that Putin raised a Lukoil assets deal there.
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Al Jazeera’s account of Oct. 21 reads: “Witkoff visited with Putin at the Constantine Palace in Saint Petersburg, while Kushner attended virtually.” According to the FT, Kremlin pool photos from the most recent visit showed “Business Deals” written on Witkoff’s notepad. MS NOW described a note card listing three agenda items, one of them “the business deals.” This site has not seen either photo. Our report on the Witkoff visits and the notepad has more.
Which deals and sanctions steps came in October 2026?
October brought a run of new reports and executive actions. On Oct. 3 the NYT reported that the talks had grown to include Lukoil’s foreign assets, with the US government taking a stake through the Development Finance Corporation. The NYT also said there is “no evidence that Kushner or Witkoff stand to profit personally,” and a Witkoff spokesperson said he “takes no salary.” Our earlier Lukoil explainer covers that deal.
On Oct. 8 Reuters reported discussion of a US investor for Nord Stream. A White House official said there had been “no Nord Stream discussions recently.”
On Oct. 9 Trump announced a Russian diesel deal on Truth Social after a call with Putin, and on Oct. 16 he signed Executive Order 14436 waiving the Graham Act’s Russia provisions. Those two steps are dated in detail in our piece on the paused energy sanctions and diesel deal.
On Oct. 27, the day of the FT story, the Kyiv Post reported the NYT’s account that Treasury was reviewing RDIF’s request to be removed from the sanctions list “through its standard procedures.”
What comes next?
The next fixed point is diplomatic, not commercial. Peskov and Zelensky both pointed to a trilateral round in Abu Dhabi in the first half of November, with no day set as of October 28.
US midterm elections fall on Nov. 3, before that window closes.
Frequently Asked Questions
When did Trump first talk about business deals with Russia?
In February 2025 he posted on Truth Social that he was in serious discussions with Putin about ending the war and about major economic development transactions between the two countries, according to MS NOW.
Where did Witkoff meet Putin in September and October 2026?
Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow on Sept. 5. On Oct. 21 Witkoff saw Putin again, at the Constantine Palace in St Petersburg, while Kushner joined remotely. The FT article of Oct. 27 gives the venues the other way round in its text, though its photo caption places the latest meeting in St Petersburg.
Has any US-Russia business deal been signed?
As of October 28, no signed US-Russia business agreement had been reported. The US official quoted in the FT said agreements hinge on a comprehensive peace framework and that nothing is finalised.
What US sanctions steps on Russia came in October 2026?
On Oct. 9 Trump announced a Russian diesel arrangement and Treasury issued a temporary license for it. On Oct. 16 he signed Executive Order 14436, waiving the Graham Act’s Russia duties and sanctions provisions. Existing sanctions under earlier orders stayed in force.
When are the next US-Russia-Ukraine talks?
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Oct. 23 that the UAE capital would host the next three-way round sometime in the first half of November. No exact date had been announced as of October 28.
Sources
- Washington discusses Russian deals for US oil majors in Ukraine peace talks — Financial Times, October 27, 2026
- Trump wants U.S. investment in Russia. It could be a trap. — MS NOW, October 26, 2026
- Trump hopes Russia, Ukraine ‘make a deal this week,’ promises ‘big business’ with US — The Kyiv Independent, April 21, 2025
- US and Russian Officials Discussed Energy Deals Alongside Latest Ukraine Peace Talks — Reuters (via gCaptain), August 26, 2025
- Trump officials’ meeting with Russian in Miami spurs questions about Ukraine proposal — Reuters (via The Star), November 22, 2025
- Treasury Sanctions Major Russian Oil Companies, Calls on Moscow to Immediately Agree to Ceasefire — U.S. Department of the Treasury, October 22, 2025
- Russia confirms $12 trillion pitch to Trump tied to Ukraine deal — The Kyiv Independent (via Yahoo News), February 2026
- Russia publicly pitches $14 trillion economic deal to Trump tied to lifting US sanctions — The Kyiv Independent, February 19, 2026
- ‘Only on Russia’s terms’ — Kremlin criticizes US proposals on economic deals — The Kyiv Independent, March 27, 2026
- Witkoff, Kushner meet with Putin to discuss Ukraine war — ABC News (via Good Morning America), September 6, 2026
- US-Russia talks on Ukraine involve multi-billion dollar oil deal, NYT reports — Reuters (via Cyprus Mail), October 3, 2026
- U.S.-Russia talks on Ukraine now involve an oil deal tied to Trump — The New York Times (via Post and Courier), October 3, 2026
- US and Russia reportedly negotiate multibillion-dollar deal on Lukoil assets — Ukrainska Pravda (reporting The New York Times), October 3, 2026
- U.S. and Russia Discuss Reviving Russian Gas Sales to Europe — OilPrice.com (reporting Reuters), October 8, 2026
- Trump-Putin diesel deal contradicts Russia sanctions law, critics say — CNBC, October 9, 2026
- Implementing the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 — The White House, October 16, 2026
- What happened during Witkoff and Kushner’s latest meeting with Putin — Al Jazeera, October 21, 2026
- Trump Administration Weighs Lifting Sanctions on Kremlin’s Investment Fund – NYT — Kyiv Post (reporting The New York Times), October 27, 2026
- Trilateral talks on war to be held in November – Zelensky — RTÉ News, October 23, 2026
- Trilateral peace talks with Russia, US negotiators to begin in November, Zelensky says — The Kyiv Independent, October 23, 2026
This article is news reporting and analysis based on the public sources listed above, as they stood on the dates shown. Where officials, lawmakers or analysts disagree, including on whether an action is lawful, their positions are attributed to them; Donald Trump Class Action is not a court and nothing here is legal advice. Facts in a developing story can change.