Trump Tells Zelensky to Halt Russian Diesel Strikes — SkimNews
Get the Geopolitics newsletter
Daily geopolitics — wars, elections, sanctions, the diplomatic moves that move markets. Free.
- Trump publicly called on Zelensky to halt Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries and diesel infrastructure, saying the attacks are "hurting the world" as he spoke at his Doonbeg golf club during the Irish Open.
- U.S. diesel prices hit a record on Friday, surpassing $6 per gallon on average, with fuel costs weighing on Americans ahead of November midterm elections.
- The International Energy Agency reported that Gulf diesel and gasoil net exports in August stood at "just over a quarter" of pre-Iran-war levels, and that Gulf and Russia combined previously accounted for 45% of global seaborne diesel trade.
- Moscow banned diesel exports in July after Ukrainian drone strikes, compounding the squeeze caused by the war on Iran disrupting shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.
- Ukraine claimed to have struck a major oil refinery in Slavyansk-on-Kuban overnight, hitting a key processing unit and tank farm; three people were injured and an oil pipeline damaged, according to Krasnodar authorities.
- Russian forces pummelled Odesa overnight, injuring at least nine, and set fire to a gas station near the Yahodyn-Dorohusk border crossing with Poland, while Ukraine's air force reported intercepting or suppressing 409 of 453 drones launched at it.
- Andrii Sybiha, Ukraine's foreign minister, called the strike near the Polish border "Putin's terror 'knocking' directly on the doors of the EU and NATO."
Why it matters: Trump's public pressure on Zelensky — issued at his Irish golf club — puts the U.S. president at odds with Kyiv's strategy of targeting Russian oil infrastructure that funds the invasion, ahead of November midterms when Americans face record $6/gallon diesel. The IEA's data showing Gulf diesel exports at a quarter of pre-war levels supports Trump's 'hurting the world' framing, but Kyiv says those same strikes are degrading an industry directly fueling Moscow's war effort.
Ask SkimNews
