Trump Says Russia and Ukraine Agreed to ‘Energy Ceasefire’

President Donald Trump said Sunday that Russia and Ukraine have agreed to an “energy ceasefire” effective immediately.

“Both parties have agreed. Do not break it!” he wrote on his Truth Social platform. He didn’t provide further details.

The day before, Trump had again demanded that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy halt attacks on Russian oil refineries and suggested he should consider stepping aside as the country’s leader. At the same time, Trump has been facing strong criticism for a deal he struck with Russia on Moscow’s exports of diesel.

Trump previously announced an energy ceasefire last month, though Zelenskyy later said no deal had been finalized and the war has continued.

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His announcement on Sunday came shortly after Zelenskyy, in an interview on ABC’s This Week, called on Trump to put more pressure on Russia to end the war.

“Russia doesn’t feel real pressure, they want to continue,” Zelenskyy said, adding that he had conveyed to Trump and his team that Ukraine is ready for a ceasefire. “We are ready to begin from any kind of steps of de-escalation.”

That includes an “energy ceasefire” if Russia agreed to similar steps, he said. “Don’t attack us. Don’t kill our children,” Zelenskyy said. “We will stop attack your diesel.”

Responding to Trump’s announcement, Zelenskyy said “Ukraine supports the ceasefire, and it is important that Russia support it as well.” He said Ukraine is “awaiting details” from the US, after previously telling Axios that the announcement took him by surprise.

The White House didn’t respond to a request for more details on the president’s Truth Social post.

With the war well into its fifth year, at least 20 people were killed when Russia struck residential buildings in Ukraine on Saturday, hours after the latest talks in the US to end Russia’s invasion were cut short by a day.

Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries and other energy assets prompted Moscow to impose a temporary ban exports of most diesel, jet fuel and gasoline in July, which it recently extended through October.

Prior to the restrictions and Ukraine’s attacks on refineries, Russia accounted for about 10% of global seaborne diesel supplies. Withdrawing those volumes from the market compounded the effect of the disruption to flows via the Strait of Hormuz, triggered by the US-Iran war.

Zelenskyy and Trump have clashed in recent days after the American president said he was working with Russian President Vladimir Putin to release some diesel fuel into the global markets. The decision — which required a Treasury waiver to lift sanctions — has drawn bipartisan criticism in the US and was assailed by Zelenskyy as giving Russia more resources to continue the war.

The cargoes would begin this month, totaling about 13.5 million barrels of Russian diesel supplies into global markets, Trump said last week. This would be the first time the US has imported diesel from Russia since March 2022, according to Energy Information Administration data.