Trump Announces Energy Ceasefire Between Russia and Ukraine Amid High Tensions
President Trump said Sunday that Russia and Ukraine have agreed to stop attacking each other’s energy infrastructure. But the Ukrainian president said he had not been told of any such deal, the Kremlin has not publicly commented, and Ukraine reported fresh Russian strikes soon afterward.
Mr. Trump posted on Truth Social that, effective immediately, an “ENERGY CEASEFIRE” was in place and that “both parties have agreed.” He did not say how it would be monitored or how long it would last. The announcement, if it holds, would address one of the most damaging features of the war: weeks of escalating strikes on oil refineries and power plants. It would not amount to a broader agreement to end the fighting.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said the announcement was “news for me,” though he said Ukraine would agree if Russia did. In a post on Telegram, he said Ukraine supports a ceasefire and that it is important Russia does as well. He later said that any arrangement would need “real guarantees.” He also said Russia had kept hitting Ukrainian energy sites, including a power plant in Kyiv and facilities in the Kharkiv region. France 24 reported that Russia made no verbal response and that Mr. Zelensky reported several strikes in the hours that followed.
A tense few days
The announcement came at the end of a volatile stretch between Washington and Kyiv. On Friday, Mr. Trump announced a deal with President Vladimir V. Putin to lift sanctions on Russian fuel and bring more diesel to market. Mr. Trump said Russia would immediately release 300,000 tons, followed by 500,000 tons in November and a million more after that. The White House has been trying to bring down fuel prices before the November midterm elections, according to Newsweek.
Mr. Zelensky reacted angrily, saying Moscow would use the money to fund further attacks. Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada told him the diesel deal runs directly against efforts to support Ukraine. Analysts said the volumes involved were too small to lower fuel prices in any lasting way. Mr. Trump, who has blamed Ukraine’s attacks on Russian refineries for contributing to a global diesel shortage, said on Saturday that it was time for Ukraine to get a new president.
Mr. Zelensky had also floated a proposal for new elections in Ukraine if Russia agreed to a 60-day ceasefire, shortly before Mr. Trump’s announcement. Earlier Sunday, he told ABC’s “This Week” that Ukraine was open to an energy truce.
Doubts, and a history of broken truces
Energy truces have a poor record in this war. In March 2025, the Kremlin said Mr. Putin agreed to a 30-day halt on energy strikes after a call with Mr. Trump, yet Russia launched dozens of drones within hours, and each side accused the other of violations. NBC News reported that Mr. Trump made a similar announcement a month ago, with attacks on energy facilities continuing afterward.
European leaders offered cautious support. President Emmanuel Macron said France backs a “real energy ceasefire,” and Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said she extended full support to Mr. Zelensky. Mr. Zelensky said he had spoken with Mr. Carney, President Alexander Stubb of Finland and NATO’s secretary general, Mark Rutte. CNBC noted that a truce could ease the oil and gas crunch ahead of winter, but it remained unclear whether either side had committed to one.
Whether the ceasefire takes hold may depend on details that neither Washington nor Moscow has yet provided, including when it started, how it would be verified and what happens if one side is accused of breaking it.
Sources: Truth Social; CBS, CNN, CNBC, NBC News, The Hill, France 24 and CBC News reports; Newsweek; Axios; Reuters.
