Zelensky: Halt to Refinery Strikes Must Be Reciprocal

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that Ukraine is prepared to stop striking Russian oil refineries — but only if Moscow simultaneously halts its attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, pushing back on President Donald Trump’s demand for a one-sided end to the strikes. The latest statement keeps the Zelensky refinery strikes dispute at the center of a widening rift between Kyiv and Washington.

“If Russia will not attack our energy, we will not attack their energy,” Zelensky said. He noted that Ukraine has not carried out strikes on Russian oil refineries or the energy sector for the two days since Trump announced an energy ceasefire — but that Russia continued its own attacks during that window.

“During this time, the Russians have attacked both our energy facilities and our critical infrastructure, sending absolutely clear signals that they have no intention of refraining from strikes on Ukraine,” Zelensky said. “Our position remains unchanged: Ukraine is ready for reciprocal steps toward de-escalation.”

The diesel deal that sparked the clash

The standoff escalated after Trump announced a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to buy diesel fuel from Russia, saying the imports would lower fuel prices in the United States ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections. The agreement calls for more than 300,000 tons of Russian diesel to enter global markets immediately, with 500,000 tons promised in November and a million tons to follow, in exchange for eased sanctions.

Trump has blamed Ukraine’s long-range strikes on Russian refineries for record diesel prices at home. On Saturday, he said Zelensky “better damn well stop” hitting Russian refineries and suggested Ukraine should replace Zelensky as its leader — a remark that drew a sharp response from Kyiv.

Zelensky called the diesel arrangement a “weak decision” that would embolden further Russian attacks on Ukraine. He argued that surging fuel costs are not caused by Ukrainian strikes but by the war in Iran and the disruption of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

“Everybody understands that the prices on diesel, it doesn’t depend on our attacks on diesel in Russia,” Zelensky said in a Fox interview. “Everybody understands that it depends on the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz.”

Ukraine pushes back on Trump’s leadership remarks

Ukrainian officials reacted forcefully to Trump’s suggestion that Ukraine needs a new president. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Zelensky was leading the country’s fight for independence with the support of the Ukrainian people, and that Ukrainians have the right to decide who leads their country.

Zelensky himself has remained in office under martial law since his term was due to expire in 2024, following Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. This week he suggested Ukraine could hold national elections within 60 days if the ceasefire holds — a direct answer to Trump’s criticism.

The Financial Times and CNN reported Monday that the State Department and Pentagon had warned Ukrainian and European officials that U.S. assistance could be cut off if Kyiv did not rein in its long-range strikes, adding pressure to an already tense relationship.

What happened on the ground this week

• Ukraine said it paused strikes on Russian refineries and energy sites for two days after Trump’s energy ceasefire announcement.
• Russia continued strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure during that period, according to Zelensky.
• A Russian drone attack on the village of Pisochyn in the Kharkiv region on Sunday evening killed three people and injured nine, according to wire reports.
• Ukrainian rescuers worked at the site of a Russian drone strike on a residential area in Kyiv on Monday.
• Neither Russian officials nor state media reported Ukrainian attacks on oil refineries since the ceasefire announcement.

Why Kyiv says the strikes must continue

Ukrainian officials argue the refinery strikes are one of Kyiv’s few effective levers against Russia’s war machine, cutting revenue that funds the invasion. In recent weeks, Zelensky said Ukraine would intensify attacks on Russian oil refineries as a response to what he described as a broadened Russian campaign to terrorize Ukrainian civilians ahead of winter.

Ukrainian intelligence, Zelensky has said, obtained documents showing Putin authorized strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure, logistics, roads, schools, and hospitals specifically to pressure residents to abandon Kyiv and other cities. “With their attacks on our energy, we have to respond on their energy,” he told Reuters. “First of all, oil refiners, etc.: what gives money to them for this war.”

He has also stressed that Ukraine does not deliberately target civilian sites — a distinction Kyiv draws as Russia’s strikes hit residential areas.

What comes next

The energy ceasefire Trump announced Sunday appears to be holding only in one direction. Trump told reporters Monday evening that “there have been violations on both sides” and demanded that Zelensky and Putin “figure out a way to end that ridiculous war.”

Ukraine says it is preparing for intensified Russian attacks on its energy system over the winter, with officials saying Moscow has stockpiled hundreds of ballistic missiles for a new campaign against electricity and other critical infrastructure. Ukraine is also scaling up electronic warfare and interceptor drones, and expects a shipment of small, inexpensive air defense missiles later this month.

Whether the reciprocal halt Zelensky proposed can hold will depend on Moscow — which has so far shown no sign of pausing its own strikes. With diesel prices, the midterms, and the winter heating season all converging, the energy war between Kyiv and Moscow looks set to remain at the center of global politics in the weeks ahead.