Zelenskyy says Ukraine will resume strikes on Russian oil refineries – FT
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Ukraine will resume strikes on Russian oil refineries after Kyiv observed the "energy ceasefire" announced by US President Donald Trump, only to face intensified Russian attacks and slower Starlink satellite communications.
Source: Financial Times
Details: "The block [on attacking refineries] is out. We're done," Zelenskyy said in a forthright interview with the FT in London. He also sharply criticised Washington's eagerness to strike business deals with Moscow and Trump's apparent affinity for Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
Asked to explain the relationship between the two leaders, Zelenskyy said Trump has an instinctive affinity for autocrats and extremely wealthy people.
"He [Trump] speaks about it openly and loudly that he loves such people and he respects such people. Because for him people who can be leaders 20 years, 30 years, 40 years, it means they can be very strong," Zelenskyy said.
The FT noted that Washington has increased pressure on Kyiv to stop strikes on Russian oil refineries, arguing that a moratorium on the attacks, together with an agreement to purchase hundreds of thousands of tonnes of Russian diesel fuel, is necessary to bring down fuel prices in the US.
Zelenskyy said he had suspended strikes on energy facilities for three days to accommodate the US request. However, Moscow continued to attack Ukraine's energy infrastructure and kill civilians, with more than 100 people killed in the past week.
The president also said that, despite Ukraine suspending its strikes, its forces had been left without US early-warning systems for incoming ballistic missiles. Starlink satellite communications, operated by Elon Musk's company, had also been slowed across the country, making battlefield operations and medium-range strikes against Russian military facilities more difficult.
The FT wrote that the deterioration in relations between Kyiv and Washington marks the most serious crisis between Ukraine and its most important security partner since the Oval Office spat in February 2025.
"Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine's relationship with the US as an 'honest' and 'strategic' partner was essential in the fight against Russia, comparing it to Kyiv's relationship with the UK," the FT noted.
Asked whether Ukraine would stop striking oil refineries even if Russia continued its attacks, in an effort to repair relations with the White House, Zelenskyy said he would agree to do so only if the US supplied him with more American-made Patriot interceptors.
He believes that halting strikes on oil refineries could simply encourage the US and Russia to strike further deals, potentially providing additional funding for Putin's war machine.
"The question will be when will the next deal be? Maybe it will be gas. Definitely it will be gas," Zelenskyy said.
He added that the US suspension of intelligence sharing and disruption of Starlink services has become "dangerous" for Ukraine.
"We will find a way out . . . but it's better not to give him [Putin] the new life or the new will to fight," Zelenskyy concluded.
Background:
- On 11 October, Trump published a post on his social media Truth Social announcing an "energy ceasefire" between Russia and Ukraine, which allegedly took effect immediately. He said that both sides had consented to cease strikes on energy infrastructure, although neither party had been informed of this.
- Barak Ravid, a journalist at American news portal Axios, stated that Zelenskyy had been unaware of the "energy ceasefire" between Ukraine and Russia announced by Trump, but added that Ukraine supports it.
- Later, Zelenskyy reported a Russian strike on CHP-5 [a combined heat and power plant] in Kharkiv and a power station in Kyiv following Trump's statement.
- On 13 October Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine has refrained from striking Russian oil refineries and energy facilities for two days in response to a proposal by Trump. Russia, meanwhile, has attacked Ukrainian energy facilities and critical infrastructure.
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