Date: October 25, 2026
Reporter: Joseph Wilson
Relations between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy have deteriorated sharply in recent weeks, with Ukraine’s continued attacks on Russian energy infrastructure becoming a major source of tension between Kyiv and Washington.
According to a Reuters reconstruction of the dispute, Trump has repeatedly demanded that Ukraine stop striking Russian refineries and other energy facilities, arguing that the attacks are contributing to higher global fuel prices. Ukraine, however, says its long-range drone campaign is a necessary response to Russia’s continuing attacks on Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure.
The disagreement has developed into one of the most serious strains in U.S.-Ukraine relations since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
It has also become intertwined with Trump's broader efforts to negotiate an end to the war, his increasingly direct engagement with Russian President Vladimir Putin and growing political concerns over energy prices ahead of the November 3 U.S. midterm elections.
Why Ukraine is attacking Russian energy facilities
Ukraine has increasingly used long-range drones to strike Russian oil refineries, fuel depots and other energy infrastructure.
Kyiv argues that these facilities are directly connected to Russia's ability to sustain its war effort. Damaging refineries can reduce Russia's ability to produce fuel for military and civilian use, while attacks on other energy infrastructure can impose economic costs on Moscow.
Ukrainian officials have also argued that the attacks are retaliation for Russia's repeated strikes against Ukraine's power grid, energy facilities and other infrastructure.
That argument became especially important after Russia continued attacking Ukrainian energy facilities despite Trump's announcement of an energy ceasefire earlier in October. Ukrainian officials said Russia's continued attacks demonstrated that Kyiv could not simply stop striking Russian energy targets while its own infrastructure remained under attack.
The issue therefore involves two competing interpretations.
Washington sees the attacks as contributing to global energy-market pressure and undermining efforts to negotiate a ceasefire.
Kyiv sees them as one of its few effective tools for imposing costs on Russia and responding to Moscow's attacks.
Trump's frustration with Zelenskiy
Trump's frustration became increasingly public in September.
Reuters reported that on September 13, Trump began publicly calling on Zelenskiy to stop targeting Russian diesel infrastructure. A September 21 call between the two leaders reportedly included further pressure on Ukraine to halt the attacks.
On October 3, Zelenskiy appeared to reject the pressure, saying Ukraine would continue and expand its campaign against Russian refineries.
The disagreement intensified further after U.S. and Ukrainian officials met in Miami on October 9. According to sources cited by Reuters, Trump's representatives expressed strong frustration with Ukraine's continued strikes on Russian energy targets.
Later that day, Trump announced an arrangement allowing Russian diesel exports to return to international markets, including the United States.
The move was highly significant because Washington had previously banned imports of Russian oil and petroleum products following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian diesel decision
Trump's decision to facilitate Russian diesel exports added another layer to the disagreement.
The U.S. president has argued that increased fuel supplies could help reduce pressure on energy markets. Reuters reported that Trump has been particularly concerned about high diesel prices, which have become politically sensitive as Americans prepare to vote in the November midterm elections.
Russia has also faced fuel shortages and restrictions on diesel exports.
On October 9, Trump announced a temporary general license allowing Russian diesel to reach global markets and waived certain sanctions authorized under legislation signed in September.
The development effectively created a striking contrast: while Ukraine was being pressured to stop attacking Russian refineries, the United States was simultaneously facilitating a path for Russian diesel to reach international buyers.
That contrast has alarmed Ukrainian officials, who argue that Russian energy revenues can help Moscow finance its war effort.
Ukraine rejects the argument that its attacks are responsible for high fuel prices
Trump has repeatedly blamed Ukrainian attacks for contributing to high energy prices.
After Ukraine struck a Russian refinery in mid-October, Trump called the renewed attacks a “disgrace” and argued that targeting diesel refineries was harmful because the United States and other countries need diesel supplies.
Ukraine's position is fundamentally different.
Kyiv argues that Russia has continued attacking Ukrainian energy infrastructure and that Ukraine cannot be expected to stop attacking Russian targets while Russian forces continue damaging Ukraine's power system.
On October 15, Ukraine struck the Ryazan oil refinery southeast of Moscow after Zelenskiy said Kyiv was abandoning the energy ceasefire announced by Trump.
The Ryazan facility is owned by Russian state oil company Rosneft and accounts for nearly 5% of Russia's refinery throughput, according to Reuters.
The attack demonstrated that Ukraine was prepared to continue its campaign despite direct pressure from the White House.
The energy ceasefire failed to settle the dispute
Trump announced an energy ceasefire on October 11, saying Russia and Ukraine had agreed not to attack each other's energy infrastructure.
But the agreement quickly became controversial.
Ukrainian officials accused Russia of continuing attacks against power facilities. Reports later emerged of Russian strikes damaging Ukrainian energy infrastructure, including facilities in and around Kyiv and Kharkiv.
Russia, meanwhile, has disputed aspects of Ukraine's interpretation of the ceasefire and said discussions over its details were continuing.
For Kyiv, the situation reinforced its argument that stopping attacks on Russian energy sites without a reliable mechanism preventing Russian attacks on Ukraine would leave the country at a disadvantage.
The collapse of the arrangement consequently deepened the disagreement between Zelenskiy and Trump.
A broader history of tension between Trump and Zelenskiy
The current dispute cannot be separated from the complicated history between the two leaders.
Trump's relationship with Zelenskiy dates back to Trump's first presidency. Their most consequential early interaction occurred in 2019, when Trump asked Zelenskiy to investigate Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden in connection with U.S. political allegations.
The episode ultimately contributed to Trump's first impeachment by the U.S. House of Representatives.
Trump has also long expressed skepticism about the scale of U.S. involvement in Ukraine and has argued that European countries should carry more of the burden of supporting Kyiv.
His preference for improving relations with Putin has further complicated the relationship with the Ukrainian government. Reuters reported that Trump has historically viewed the war as primarily a European issue rather than a core U.S. national interest.
The dispute now threatens broader U.S. support
The most serious concern for Ukraine is that the disagreement over energy strikes could expand into a broader reduction in American support.
Zelenskiy has said Ukrainian military officials were warned that continued attacks on Russian energy infrastructure could result in the United States cutting intelligence support.
A U.S. official familiar with the situation disputed Kyiv's characterization, saying there had been no increase in pressure and arguing that Washington did not need to threaten Zelenskiy to persuade him to negotiate.
The disagreement over intelligence is important because Ukraine relies heavily on Western intelligence and satellite-based communications for military operations.
A temporary disruption involving SpaceX's Starlink satellite system also raised concerns in Kyiv about Ukraine's vulnerability if American technological support were reduced.
Trump later said he had asked SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to restore Ukraine's access to the system.
Russia benefits politically from the disagreement
The growing conflict between Washington and Kyiv has been welcomed by Russian officials and pro-Kremlin figures.
Reuters reported that Kremlin hawks have viewed the Trump-Zelenskiy dispute as beneficial to Moscow because it weakens the relationship between Ukraine and its most important military and political supporter.
However, Russia has not necessarily secured all the benefits it might want.
Most U.S. sanctions against Russia remain in place, Ukrainian drone attacks have continued, and European governments have maintained strong support for Kyiv.
The Kremlin also recognizes that Trump's foreign policy can change quickly, making it difficult for Moscow to predict the ultimate outcome.
The dispute comes at a politically sensitive moment for Trump
Domestic American politics are playing an important role in the energy dispute.
The U.S. midterm elections are scheduled for November 3, and Republicans face voter concerns about inflation and energy prices.
Reuters reported that diesel prices have reached record levels following the broader disruption in global energy markets after the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran began in February.
That makes fuel prices politically significant.
Trump has therefore emphasized policies that could increase global fuel supplies, including the Russian diesel arrangement.
His administration's calculation appears to be that increasing fuel availability could help reduce price pressure on American consumers.
Ukraine's concern is that such measures could simultaneously strengthen Russia's energy revenues while weakening Kyiv's ability to pressure Moscow militarily.
Peace negotiations continue despite the worsening relationship
The deterioration between Trump and Zelenskiy has not completely ended diplomatic efforts.
Reuters reported that negotiations continued in October, including talks in Oslo on October 20.
Ukraine presented new proposals, while Trump's son-in-law and envoy Jared Kushner repeated the administration's demand that Kyiv stop attacking Russian diesel refineries.
The following day, Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff met Putin in St. Petersburg.
The talks produced at least one goodwill gesture when Russia agreed to release detained American Stephen Hubbard.
Zelenskiy later said representatives from Ukraine, Russia and the United States could meet in Abu Dhabi during the first half of November, potentially creating a path toward another high-level meeting.
However, no major breakthrough has yet emerged from the peace process.
Ukraine faces a difficult strategic choice
Ukraine now faces a complicated calculation.
Continuing attacks on Russian energy infrastructure could impose economic and military costs on Moscow and demonstrate that Russia is vulnerable deep inside its territory.
But those attacks also risk further angering Trump at a time when Ukraine depends heavily on American military, intelligence and technological support.
Stopping the attacks could improve relations with Washington, but Kyiv fears that doing so without reciprocal Russian restraint could leave Ukraine exposed to continued Russian strikes.
The dilemma is particularly serious as winter approaches and Ukraine prepares for another season in which Russia is expected to target the country's energy infrastructure.
A widening divide between Washington and Kyiv
The dispute over Russian refineries has therefore become much larger than a disagreement about oil.
It now involves:
- U.S. energy prices and inflation;
- American midterm-election politics;
- Russian oil and diesel exports;
- Ukraine's military strategy;
- U.S. intelligence support;
- satellite communications;
- sanctions against Moscow;
- Trump's relationship with Putin;
- and the future of peace negotiations.
Reuters' reconstruction shows how these issues have combined to push Trump and Zelenskiy further apart during October.
The deterioration comes at a particularly sensitive moment for Ukraine. Kyiv needs continued Western support to withstand Russian attacks, while Trump is increasingly focused on ending the war and reducing the economic consequences of the conflict.
For Russia, the dispute offers an opportunity to exploit divisions between Ukraine and the United States.
For European governments, it raises concerns about whether American support for Kyiv will remain reliable.
And for Ukraine, the immediate challenge is maintaining its ability to defend itself without further damaging relations with the American president.
What happens next?
The next few weeks could determine whether the current dispute becomes a temporary disagreement or a lasting strategic rupture.
The November 3 U.S. midterm elections will remove one immediate political pressure point for the Trump administration, but the underlying disagreement over Ukraine's military strategy will remain.
The proposed November diplomatic meetings could also provide an opportunity to rebuild communication between Washington and Kyiv and explore a new ceasefire framework.
For now, however, Ukraine continues to argue that its attacks on Russian energy infrastructure are part of its defence against Russia's broader war, while Trump continues to demand that Kyiv stop targeting facilities that he believes are contributing to higher energy prices.
The fundamental disagreement is therefore unresolved.
Ukraine wants the ability to pressure Russia militarily. Trump wants Ukraine to stop striking Russian energy infrastructure and move toward a negotiated settlement. Russia is attempting to exploit the growing divide.
Whether diplomacy can close that gap—or whether the dispute will lead to a deeper break between Washington and Kyiv—could have major consequences for the next phase of the Russia-Ukraine war.