US President Donald Trump made a surprise announcement of an energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine on Sunday that he said was “effective immediately”, but Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he was still waiting to see details of the deal.
There was no word from Moscow on the announcement, which followed days of intense pressure from Trump for Ukraine to halt its attacks on Russian oil refineries. He blames those strikes for a rise in diesel prices that is hurting his Republican Party ahead of US midterm elections next month.
In a dramatic deterioration in relations, Trump on Saturday warned Zelenskiy that he had “better damn well stop” attacking Russian refineries, and urged Ukrainians to replace their leader at new elections. Trump said Zelenskiy had missed several opportunities to strike a deal with Moscow.
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, Trump unexpectedly announced that Ukraine and Russia had agreed to an energy ceasefire, but did not elaborate further.
“Effective immediately, there is an ENERGY CEASEFIRE in the War between Russia and Ukraine. Both parties have agreed. Do not break it!” Trump wrote.
Trump, whose war in Iran has been widely blamed for hiking global fuel prices, had previously announced an energy ceasefire in Ukraine in mid-September, although neither side ever confirmed such an agreement was reached.
Zelenskiy said in a post on the Telegram app that he had discussed Trump’s announcement with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Finnish President Alexander Stubb.
“Ukraine supports the ceasefire, and it is important that Russia support it as well. We are awaiting details from the American side,” he said.
Hours earlier, Zelenskiy had pushed back against US pressure for a unilateral end to Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries, repeating his long-standing position that he was willing to do so only if President Vladimir Putin suspended Russian strikes on Ukrainian power infrastructure.
Any such ceasefire agreement would need to come with “real guarantees”, Zelenskiy said.
“The real cause of the war in Europe is Russia and Russia alone,” Zelenskiy said. “It’s possible to stop strikes on energy infrastructure as early as today, but Putin does not want to do so.”
PROMISE OF ELECTIONS
Trump also called for elections in Ukraine, suspended since the 2022 Russian invasion, to which Zelenskiy responded that he would call a vote if Putin agreed to a 60-day ceasefire.
Zelenskiy said it was “up to Ukrainians” to choose their leader, but added that there needed to be an end to the fighting first. Ukrainian law prohibits elections under martial law for security reasons.
“Please tell Putin, give us two months, 60 days of total ceasefire, 60 days, and we will organise elections,” Zelenskiy said.
The Ukrainian leader rejected that he was to blame for energy price rises, adding that “everybody in the world” knew that the war in the Middle East was a bigger factor.
The steep rise in global diesel prices, which followed the outbreak of the Iran war in February, has become a political liability for Trump’s Republican Party ahead of the midterms, when opposition Democrats could gain control of one or both houses of Congress.
On Saturday, Zelenskiy responded angrily to Trump’s announcement of a diesel supply deal with Russia, saying it would embolden Moscow’s attacks on Ukraine and lead to a greater loss of civilian lives.
Analysts said Trump’s diesel supply agreement with Moscow was unlikely to lead to sustained lower fuel prices as the volumes involved were too small.
Under terms of the deal as described by Trump on Friday, Russia will immediately supply more than 300,000 metric tons of diesel to US and global markets, equal to about 2.25 million barrels of fuel. The US exports about 1.5 million barrels of diesel per day.
The diesel deal was also criticized by US lawmakers, including one of Trump’s fellow Republicans, Representative Don Bacon, who said it was time to apply more sanctions, not lift them.
KYIV RESIDENTS ANGRY
On the streets of Kyiv, several residents expressed anger at Trump’s suggestion that Ukraine should find a new leader willing to make a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“No one has the right to tell us what to do, especially since elections cannot be held during wartime,” said Sabina, a 40-year-old primary school teacher. “In my view, it is a betrayal by our partners,” she said, describing Trump’s remarks.
Zelenskiy said he would continue discussions with European leaders on Sunday, and there were daily conversations around additional air defence packages, including ammunition for combat aircraft that are used to down Russia’s jet-powered drones.
On Monday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha is due to participate in a European Union Foreign Affairs Council meeting that is expected to discuss increasing sanctions pressure on Russia and advancing negotiations on Ukraine’s EU accession.