Trump Warns Ukraine: Stop Oil Refinery Strikes or Lose Intel — SkimNews
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- The Trump administration warned it could cut off intelligence-sharing with Ukraine unless Ukrainian forces halt long-range drone strikes on oil refineries inside Russia, President Zelenskyy told NPR.
- President Zelenskyy rejected Trump's claim that Ukraine is to blame for rising U.S. diesel prices, telling NPR the increases stem from the Strait of Hormuz disruption and that the sanctions lift would give the Kremlin more war money without lowering American fuel costs.
- Trump moved Friday to ease sanctions on Russian diesel exports — which he framed as reducing global energy prices — prompting Zelenskyy to call it "a weak decision by strong partners" and Trump to retort that "it's time for Ukraine to get a new president."
- Trump announced Sunday on Truth Social that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to a partial energy-infrastructure ceasefire, a claim that caught Kyiv off guard; Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters only that "contacts were ongoing."
- Russia struck a Kyiv power plant with a ballistic missile after the announced truce, Zelenskyy wrote on social media, adding "no early warning from our partners" — language echoing his broader complaint about U.S. intelligence cooperation.
- U.S. diesel prices average $6.27 per gallon, up more than 70% from roughly $3.65 a year ago according to AAA, a politically sensitive figure as midterm elections approach and Trump cites energy costs to pressure Zelenskyy.
- The Trump administration paused intelligence-sharing with Ukraine last year amid tensions with Zelenskyy, and the White House declined to confirm or deny a new cutoff threat, instead pointing to Trump's Tuesday comment that "we are sharing intel, we want the war to end."
Why it matters: The Trump administration is leveraging its intelligence lifeline — a tool Ukraine has called indispensable for intercepting Russian strikes — to force Kyiv off a battlefield tactic the White House considers inflationary, putting Zelenskyy in the position of choosing between energy-price politics in Washington and his own war strategy as diesel sits 70% above year-ago levels.
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