Trump blames Russia–Ukraine war for record oil; Kremlin calls energy truce proposal ‘a very good idea’

On Monday, Trump claimed in a social media post that “Ukraine has agreed not to strike Russian energy targets. Russia has agreed to do the same!” But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky turned it into a proposal: “There is now a strong American proposal for a reciprocal halt to strikes on critical infrastructure,” he said on Monday evening, adding that if this could become “the first step of de-escalation — a step toward ending Russian strikes on our critical infrastructure and our strikes in response — then Ukraine is ready to support de-escalation.”

Zelensky set clear conditions: Kyiv is ready only if its partners guarantee that Russia “sincerely refrains from striking our electricity system, other energy facilities, critical infrastructure and food supply routes.” He warned that any agreement must be “credible, long-term” and “not fall apart after the Russians hold their ‘elections'” on September 18–20, serving only as “a temporary easing of tension over gasoline and oil precisely for that period.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Tuesday welcomed the proposal, calling it “a very good idea,” but did not confirm any agreement: Russia is in contact with the American side and “will continue that dialogue.” Peskov added that halting the strikes would not resolve the global oil supply crisis, demanding the removal of sanctions on Russian energy exports and “unimpeded access for these oil products to global markets.”

Trump directly tied the issue to record fuel prices: oil reached over $6 a gallon in the U.S. on Friday for the first time ever, according to AAA, while global oil prices exceeded $108 a barrel amid the Middle East war. Trump said the increase “was not made by the Middle East,” but by “what is happening in Russia and Ukraine.” In August, Moscow exported about 150,000 barrels of oil per day, 81% below its five-year average, according to Vortexa data, after Russia stopped selling oil abroad.

Despite the statements, the strikes continued: on Tuesday morning Russia hit two fuel stations on busy roads in Kyiv, according to officials, while Zelensky said Ukrainians struck the refinery in Syzran, in Russia’s Samara region. This is not the first time an energy truce has been attempted: in March 2025 Trump brokered a reciprocal suspension of strikes, but both sides were accused almost immediately of violations and the agreement never materialized.

Source: CNN