The Kremlin responded positively on Monday to U.S. President Trump's call for Ukraine to stop striking Russia's diesel refineries. Moscow added that the turmoil in global energy markets is mainly the result of the conflict in the Gulf region.
President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social on September 14 that "Ukraine has agreed not to hit Russian Energy targets. Russia has agreed to do, likewise!" He added that "the World's Diesel price rise is mostly caused by the Russia/Ukraine War, not Iran."
No Ukrainian official has confirmed this. As of publication, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry and its Ministry of Defense have issued no statement verifying or denying an agreement. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said September 14 that "any call on the Kyiv regime to stop attacks on civilian economic infrastructure can only be welcomed," a response to Trump's pressure on Ukraine, not a confirmation Russia will reciprocate. Asked directly whether Moscow would halt its own strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, Peskov declined to answer, according to Meduza.
What changed in 24 hours
On September 13, Trump was demanding, not claiming. Speaking from his Doonbeg golf resort in Ireland, he told reporters Zelenskyy "has to stop knocking out diesel fuel infrastructure in Russia." By September 14, that demand had become an assertion of a completed bilateral deal. Between those two statements, Ukraine's General Staff reported strikes overnight on September 12-13 against the Slavyansk refinery in Krasnodar Krai and the TANEKO refinery in Tatarstan, both causing fires. The strikes occurred before Trump's Truth Social post, indicating no operational pause was yet in effect at the time of writing.
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Where this goes next
Kyiv's silence may be tactical, though no Ukrainian official has said why. Zelenskyy said September 13 he is "open to" an energy ceasefire and plans to raise it with Trump at the UN General Assembly, September 21-23, as reported in Crisis.Zone's earlier coverage of the Witkoff-Kushner shuttle diplomacy. Trump has previously announced bilateral pauses that neither side independently confirmed. Whether Kyiv breaks its silence, or Moscow's asymmetric position hardens, remains unresolved as of this writing.
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