Brent crude rose 1.02% to $66.52 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) climbed 0.96% to $63.40 on Monday, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Washington for talks with President Donald Trump. Traders are watching closely for potential shifts in U.S. sanctions on Russian exports, a key driver of global supply dynamics.
Prices held steady as traders judged that immediate risks to Russian supply had eased following last week’s Trump-Putin meeting in Alaska, where the two leaders discussed a broader peace framework, according to Reuters.
Zelensky arrived in Washington with proposals for a wider security framework and signaled openness to a three-way meeting with Trump and Putin. For Europe, the stakes are high. Hungary and Slovakia remain heavily reliant on Russian crude delivered through the Druzhba pipeline, which continues to operate despite sanctions. Any change in U.S. enforcement policy could determine whether those flows remain tolerated or come under tighter restrictions, forcing Central European states to seek more seaborne alternatives from the Middle East and the U.S. Gulf.
Pipeline security has already emerged as a flashpoint. Russian crude deliveries to Hungary and Slovakia via the Druzhba network were halted after a Ukrainian strike on a transformer station earlier on Monday. Hungarian officials called the stoppage an attack on national energy security, while Ukraine’s foreign ministry said Moscow alone was responsible for supply risks.
Analysts offered nuanced takes on Monday, with Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodities analyst at SEB, saying “any talks about U.S. sanctions towards Russia are now blowing in the wind,” implying markets are discounting stricter enforcement, as reported by Rigzone.
Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group, warned that “the market is still locked in a speculative fervour right now… traders seem very pessimistic on prices,” suggesting expectations are split between peace optimism and concern over weaker sanctions, according to Reuters.
Broader geopolitical tensions also contributed. Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, noted that comments from U.S. trade adviser Peter Navarro, calling India a “clearinghouse for Russian oil”, have revived concerns about fragile supply chains, as covered by EnergyNow.
Murban crude traded at $69.01, up 1.07%, while U.S. natural gas slipped 0.14% to $2.91 per million British thermal units. Traders said price direction through the rest of the week will hinge on signals from Washington discussions and any fresh guidance on sanctions policy.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
More Top Reads From Oilprice.com
