US President Donald Trump said Ukraine and Russia had agreed to stop meeting each other’s energy targets amid concerns about rising global fuel prices, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Kremlin later said it was a proposal rather than a firm agreement.
Ukraine has been attacking Russia’s fuel infrastructure for months, severely reducing Moscow’s refining capacity and causing widespread supply shortages. In response, Russia, the world’s second-largest diesel exporter after the United States, banned the sale of its diesel overseas.
“There is a strong proposal from the US side to mutually stop attacks on critical infrastructure,” President Zelenskiy said Monday night. “Ukraine stands ready to support de-escalation if this is the first step in de-escalating tensions, a step towards ending Russian attacks on our critical infrastructure and in response.”
Earlier on Monday, President Zelenskiy hinted that the proposal would require cooperation from Ukraine’s allies, saying in a social media post: “If our partners are prepared to ensure that Russia truly refrains from attacks on our power systems, other energy facilities, critical infrastructure, and food supply routes, then we are certainly prepared to ensure a corresponding cessation of attacks.”
Zelenskiy added the warning that any agreement must be “credible and long-term” and “must not collapse after Russia holds ‘elections’ and eases pressure on gasoline and diesel during that very period.”
His comments came after President Trump claimed in a social media post on Monday that “Ukraine agreed not to meet Russia’s energy goals. Russia agreed to meet them as well!”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Tuesday welcomed the proposal as a “very good idea” but did not confirm any agreement, saying Russia was in touch with its American counterpart and would “continue the dialogue.”
Russia attacked two gas stations on busy streets in Kiev on Tuesday morning, officials said, and Zelenskiy said Ukrainians attacked a refinery in Syzran, Russia’s Samara region.
President Trump has repeatedly expressed concern that Kiev’s attacks on diesel fuel facilities in Russia are causing supply shortages as global oil prices continue to soar due to the Iran war.
Diesel, a key fuel that powers trucks, trains, tractors and boats, topped $6 a gallon for the first time in history in the U.S. on Friday, as global oil prices topped $108 a barrel amid Middle East wars, according to AAA.
The conflict in the Strait of Hormuz, which once carried about a fifth of the world’s oil supplies, has also restricted supplies as the United States and Iran battle for control of the vital waterway. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline, an important alternative route for Saudi Arabia’s oil exports via the Red Sea, was shut down on Friday after a drone attack launched from Iraq, further complicating matters.
But President Trump said the rise in diesel prices was not caused by the “Middle East,” but by “what’s going on in Russia and Ukraine.”
But Peskov said stopping attacks on energy infrastructure would not address global supply problems and called for the lifting of sanctions on Russia’s energy exports and “unimpeded access to world markets for these oil products.”
According to Vortexa, Moscow’s diesel exports in August were about 150,000 barrels per day, 81% below the five-year average due to the export ban.
Ukraine, whose energy infrastructure has also been repeatedly targeted by Russia, maintains the refinery is a legitimate target to cut off funding to Russia and reduce domestic war support.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said ahead of Trump’s post on Monday that the deteriorating situation in the fuel market was “mainly due to instability and new escalations in the Persian Gulf region.” He declined to comment on whether Russia would halt attacks on Ukraine’s economic and energy infrastructure.
Diesel costs have increased by more than 55% since the start of the war with Iran, outpacing the 40% increase in gasoline prices. In fact, diesel is on track to record its largest annual increase, according to a CNN review of AAA data.
While price increases may be less visible to motorists, higher diesel prices result in higher costs for businesses, which tend to be passed on to consumers.
Besides the rise in oil prices, part of the reason for the rise in diesel prices is that refineries in the Middle East and Russia, which are responsible for turning crude oil into fuel, have been damaged in the wars.
Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates, told CNN last week that “refiners are already maxing out diesel production. There’s just no way they can take any more diesel out of the system.”
China’s export restrictions are also contributing to the price rise.
Since the start of the war in 2022, Ukraine has attacked Russian oil facilities more than 300 times, severely disrupting supplies across the country and forcing gas stations to ration, according to a CNN analysis in July.
Hours before Trump’s remarks, the Ukrainian military announced that it had attacked an oil refinery in the Russian republic of Tatarstan overnight into Sunday.
The military said it had attacked the Taneko refinery in the city of Nizhnekamsk in an attack carried out jointly with Ukraine’s Security Service and the Main Intelligence Directorate.
Tatarstan officials said two civilians were killed and another injured in the Ukrainian attack.
Correction: This article has been updated to correct the attribution of the attack in Russia’s Samara region.
