Trump Strikes Diesel Deal With Putin After Ukraine Keeps Hitting Russian Refineries

US President Donald Trump has decided to make a deal with Russia on diesel fuel deliveries after Ukraine ignored several US appeals to stop attacking Russian oil refineries, according to the US outlet Axios, which cites a US official. Ukraine carries out these strikes during the war that Russia launched, so the decision affects both the fuel market and Kyiv's relations with Washington.

How the situation developed

As early as September, Trump urged Ukraine to halt strikes on Russian oil refining facilities and blamed Ukraine for high diesel prices. He repeated that position later. On Friday, after a phone call with Moscow, the US president said he had reached an agreement with Putin on diesel deliveries.

Zelensky's reaction

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sharply criticised the step, calling it "absolutely terrible". In his words, such a "birthday gift to Putin" would give Russia additional billions to continue the war.

What Axios reports

The outlet quotes an official who says Zelensky misjudges the situation. By continuing to attack refineries, the official says, he undermines the trust he has managed to build with Trump over the past six months.

Zelensky had offered to stop the attacks on condition that Russia also stop striking Ukrainian power plants. However, Axios explains, Trump did not regard Ukraine's strikes on Russian refineries as equivalent to Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure.