President Donald Trump announced on Monday that both Ukraine and Russia have agreed to cease targeting each other's energy facilities. Trump made this claim on his Truth Social account, stating, "Ukraine has agreed not to hit Russian Energy targets. Russia has agreed to do, likewise!" This announcement comes after Trump had previously criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for causing rising diesel prices, including a record $6.23 per gallon in the U.S., due to Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian oil refineries.
While Trump attributed the global rise in diesel prices primarily to the Russia/Ukraine War, he had also previously blamed the ongoing conflict with Iran for significant disruptions, particularly to Middle Eastern refining capacity and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Ukraine, meanwhile, had escalated its strikes on Russian oil infrastructure as a strategic move to disrupt Moscow's fuel supplies and reduce its ability to finance the war, leveraging advancements in long-range drone technology.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in response to Trump's statement, indicated that while no official deal had been confirmed, Ukraine had proposed to its partners an agreement to stop the destruction of critical infrastructure. Zelenskyy stated that if partners could ensure Russia's genuine commitment not to strike Ukrainian electricity, other energy facilities, critical infrastructure, and food movement, then Ukraine would reciprocate. This proposed energy ceasefire is reportedly an issue Zelenskyy plans to discuss during a potential meeting with Trump in New York between September 21-23 on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly.
The Kremlin, through spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, had previously welcomed Trump's call for Ukraine to halt strikes on Russia's diesel-producing facilities, though it also pointed to the conflict in the Gulf as a primary cause of global energy market upheaval. Earlier proposals for an "energy truce" had been discussed during Trump administration-mediated peace talks in summer 2025. Despite Trump's assertion, a top Ukrainian energy official, speaking anonymously, indicated they had no knowledge of such an energy ceasefire agreement.
