President Trump Blasts Zelensky Over Russian Oil Refinery Strikes, Calls Ukraine’s Defiance a “Disgrace”
President Trump sharply criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky after Kyiv announced it would resume attacks on Russian oil refineries, accusing the Ukrainian leader of driving up global energy prices and undermining efforts to negotiate an end to the war.
During a Thursday interview with Newsmax host Rob Finnerty, Trump condemned Zelensky’s decision to abandon a proposed energy ceasefire that Washington had attempted to establish between Russia and Ukraine.
“If you tell me that Zelensky is again shooting at refineries, all he’s doing is making the world oil price higher,” Trump said. “I think that’s a disgrace. There’s plenty of other targets.”
The president argued that Ukrainian attacks on facilities producing diesel fuel were creating additional problems for countries already struggling with elevated energy costs.
Trump has made reducing fuel prices a priority as his administration confronts economic pressure stemming from the ongoing conflict with Iran and disruptions to international energy markets.
His latest criticism came shortly after Zelensky announced that Ukraine would no longer honor the restrictions on attacking Russian energy infrastructure.
“The block is out,” Zelensky told the Financial Times on Thursday. “We’re done.”
The Ukrainian president claimed that his military had suspended attacks on Russian refineries for three days in response to Trump’s request, only for Moscow to continue bombarding Ukrainian power stations and other energy facilities.
Zelensky accused Russia of conducting more than 100 attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure over the preceding week, arguing that Kyiv could not continue observing restrictions that Moscow was allegedly ignoring.
Trump announced Sunday that both countries had agreed to stop attacking each other’s energy facilities as winter approached. However, neither government publicly confirmed accepting the arrangement at the time.
The disagreement intensified when Ukrainian drones struck a major Russian oil refinery in the Ryazan region, southeast of Moscow.
Regional Governor Pavel Malkov confirmed that the attack caused a fire at the facility, which is operated by the Russian state-controlled oil company Rosneft.
The refinery is among Russia’s largest petroleum processing facilities and plays an important role in supplying fuel to the Moscow region.
Ukraine has repeatedly targeted Russian oil infrastructure in an effort to disrupt fuel production and reduce revenue available to Moscow during the war.
Trump argued that those operations were counterproductive because of their potential impact on global energy supplies.
The president also delivered a pointed assessment of Zelensky’s role in negotiations, describing the Ukrainian leader as more difficult to work with than Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“I think they actually both would like to see it end,” Trump said, before adding that he finds Zelensky more difficult to negotiate with than Putin.
Trump also expressed dissatisfaction with Zelensky’s leadership and suggested that Ukraine should consider holding a presidential election.
Ukraine has not held a presidential election since 2019, with subsequent elections postponed under martial law following Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The president’s remarks represent another deterioration in relations between Washington and Kyiv after a brief period of improved diplomatic cooperation.
The dispute began escalating last week when Trump announced an agreement involving the purchase of more than 2.25 million barrels of Russian diesel.
The administration presented the arrangement as a way to increase fuel supplies and reduce prices during a period of international energy instability.
Zelensky strongly opposed the agreement, arguing that additional purchases of Russian petroleum products could provide financial support to Putin’s government.
He described the arrangement as a gift to the Russian president and accused Washington of weakening economic pressure on Moscow.
The Ukrainian leader also alleged that American military officials threatened to suspend intelligence sharing unless Kyiv agreed to stop attacking Russian refineries.
Those allegations have not been independently established, and Trump has denied suspending intelligence cooperation with Ukraine.
Additional controversy emerged after Ukrainian forces experienced restrictions involving Starshield, a military satellite communications service developed by SpaceX and operated under American government arrangements.
Ukrainian officials complained that reduced access interfered with drone operations and other battlefield activities.
The White House has disputed suggestions that Trump personally ordered the restrictions, while questions remain about who authorized the changes.
The controversy has increased concern among Ukrainian officials about their reliance on American intelligence, military equipment and communications technology.
Meanwhile, Russia continued launching missile and drone attacks against Ukrainian territory.
On Friday, Russian strikes were reported across nine Ukrainian regions, injuring at least 15 people and disrupting electricity supplies to hundreds of thousands of households.
The attacks came as Ukraine prepared for colder weather, when damage to power stations and electrical infrastructure could create additional hardships for civilians.
Zelensky addressed the situation during a meeting with European leaders in Brussels, where he sought additional assistance and stronger security commitments.
He argued that Moscow had shown little interest in ending the conflict and warned that Ukraine needed to prepare for continued Russian attacks throughout the winter.
European officials expressed support for Kyiv and criticized Russia’s continued strikes against civilian infrastructure.
The Kremlin, however, sided with Trump’s criticism of Zelensky.
Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused the Ukrainian leader of refusing to accept responsibility for advancing peace negotiations.
Moscow also criticized Ukraine’s renewed refinery attacks, claiming that Kyiv was undermining diplomatic efforts supported by Washington.
Russia’s Defense Ministry separately claimed that its air defenses intercepted 644 Ukrainian drones overnight across multiple regions, including occupied Crimea and areas near the Black Sea.
Those figures have not been independently verified.
The latest confrontation highlights the growing differences between Trump and Zelensky over how to bring the war to an end.
Trump believes diplomatic negotiations and efforts to stabilize energy markets can help create conditions for a settlement.
Zelensky maintains that Ukraine must continue applying military and economic pressure on Russia until Moscow agrees to meaningful security guarantees.
The Ukrainian government argues that refinery strikes are an important tool for weakening Russia’s ability to sustain its invasion.
Trump, meanwhile, has warned that damaging fuel production facilities could create economic consequences extending far beyond the battlefield.
The disagreement has also attracted attention from Republican lawmakers who believe Washington should maintain strong sanctions against Russia while continuing efforts to negotiate peace.
Some Republicans have questioned whether easing restrictions on Russian energy exports could weaken American leverage over Putin.
Others support Trump’s efforts to address fuel prices and pursue a diplomatic resolution rather than allow the conflict to continue indefinitely.
For now, the proposed energy ceasefire has failed to produce a sustained halt in attacks.
Ukraine has resumed targeting Russian refineries, while Moscow continues striking Ukrainian infrastructure.
The breakdown leaves the Trump administration confronting renewed tensions with Kyiv as it attempts to secure cooperation from both sides.
With no comprehensive peace agreement in place, Trump’s latest remarks underscore his frustration with Zelensky and his determination to prevent the conflict from creating further disruptions to global energy markets.