Zelensky After Meeting Trump: Ukraine Ready for Any Energy Ceasefire Format, but No Discussion of Unilaterally Halting Refinery Strikes

After a roughly 40-minute meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump and his team on the sidelines of the UN, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters that Kyiv is ready for any format of an energy ceasefire with Russia. He stressed, however, that there was no discussion of Ukraine unilaterally halting strikes on Russian refineries.

Zelensky reiterated that he is ready to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in a trilateral meeting with Trump. He said he hopes the United States will find a way to bring Moscow into any kind of negotiation toward ending the war.

Trump has repeatedly asked Ukraine to stop strikes on Russian refineries, saying they are causing a global shortage of oil (diesel) and high prices. Kyiv argues the strikes are a response to Russian bombing of Ukraine’s energy grid and has offered only a mutual halt — that is, stopping strikes on energy infrastructure by both sides, if Russia stops attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure.

Source: Reuters