Trump turned to Putin for diesel after Zelenskyy ignored US request against strike

Trump's decision to secure Russian diesel supplies came after Kyiv failed to heed six US appeals to stop targeting Russian oil refineries, an American official told Axios, as the deal threatens to strain Washington's ties with Ukraine and complicate efforts to negotiate an end to the war.

In Short

• US says Kyiv ignored six requests to stop refinery attacks
• Trump wanted Ukraine to halt strikes at Russian refineries
• US envoys told Kyiv refinery hits were raising US fuel prices

US President Donald Trump decided to pursue a diesel supply arrangement with Russian President Vladimir Putin after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy disregarded six US requests to stop strikes on Russian oil refineries, a US official with direct knowledge of the matter said, according to an Axios report.

The decision has opened a fresh rift between Washington and Kyiv, potentially complicating the Trump administration’s latest efforts to negotiate an end to the Russia-Ukraine war.

“Zelenskyy is misreading the room. By continuing to hit refineries, he is eroding the good will that he has built with Trump over the last six months,” the US official said.

Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries in recent months have disrupted Russia’s energy sector and contributed to an energy crisis globally. Moscow subsequently prohibited diesel exports, further tightening global supplies already under pressure from the war in Iran.

During discussions with Trump and his envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Zelenskyy offered to suspend attacks on Russian refineries if Moscow agreed to stop targeting Ukraine’s power plants.

However, according to the US official, Trump wanted Kyiv to halt its strikes without making the move conditional on Russian action, as the attacks were adding to fuel price pressures in the US.

The official said Trump did not view Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries as comparable to Russian attacks on Ukraine’s electricity infrastructure.

Witkoff and Kushner held eight hours of discussions with Ukrainian negotiators in Miami on Friday, during which they said Trump was expected to speak with Putin and lift sanctions on Russian diesel exports.

The envoys conveyed that Trump had chosen to proceed with the arrangement after repeated US appeals to Ukraine to stop targeting Russian oil refineries went unheeded. Washington maintained that the strikes were affecting American consumers.

A Ukrainian official alleged that the two envoys warned Kyiv that continued defiance could lead Trump to suspend US intelligence support for Ukraine.

The US official rejected the allegation, saying the envoys had instead stressed Washington’s role as a key partner supplying Ukraine with weapons and intelligence. They urged Kyiv not to take steps that would adversely affect American consumers, the official said.

“The attacks on the refineries cause pain in Russia, but it causes pain for the US, too,” the official added.

However, reacting to the development, Zelenskyy said that the agreement had caught him off guard and criticised the deal, warning that it would provide Moscow with funds to prolong the war and undermine peace efforts.

Zelenskyy called the deal “an investment in a war that must be ended, not prolonged” and “a weak decision on the part of strong partners”.

US ENVOYS MAY VISIT MOSCOW, KYIV

Meanwhile, Witkoff and Kushner are considering trips to Moscow and Kyiv next week to discuss proposals for ending the conflict, the US official said. The impact of the latest dispute on those plans remains uncertain.

“Putin is hitting [Ukraine] hard but we think he is open to a discussion on ending the war. We want to work on a new proposal that will be good enough for him in order to get him to stop,” the official said.

However, Putin did not agree to resume peace negotiations with Ukraine during his 90-minute phone conversation with Trump, Russian presidential foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov told reporters.

Ushakov said Ukrainian attacks on Moscow and other Russian cities during Russia’s parliamentary elections had “thwarted the possibility of an immediate resumption of the negotiation process”.

“The president said, we will think about when these negotiations can be resumed,” Ushakov added.

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