Russia struck power plants in Ukraine on Sunday night despite U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement of an "energy ceasefire" between the two countries. Meanwhile, Britain's Financial Times reported that the Trump administration had threatened to suspend arms supplies to Ukraine unless Kyiv halted its attacks on Russian energy infrastructure.
The report, citing senior European officials, said Washington was pressuring European governments and Kyiv to stop attacks on oil refineries deep inside Russia. The American message reportedly included threats to cut off intelligence sharing and suspend the mechanism through which Ukraine obtains U.S. weapons.
Trump calls on Ukraine to find a 'new president'
(Video: Rapid Response 47)
Among those contacted by U.S. officials was Zelensky's military adviser Pavlo Palisa, a former Ukrainian army general. One European official who spoke to the Financial Times said he had personally received a call from a U.S. defense official. "They're calling Kyiv, they're calling everyone in Europe," he said.
On Sunday, Trump announced that Russia and Ukraine had both agreed to an energy ceasefire under which neither side would attack the other's energy facilities. Neither country confirmed his announcement, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded shortly afterward: "That's news to me."
Despite Trump's announcement, Russia struck power plants in Kharkiv and Kyiv on Sunday night, shortly after the purported ceasefire was supposed to take effect. "Our repair crews are only now restoring electricity and water supplies to Kyiv. Nobody has heard of a ceasefire," a senior Ukrainian official close to Zelensky told the Financial Times.
Zelensky's pointed response came after he had already reacted to Trump's call for him to be replaced, saying he would be prepared to hold elections if Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to a 60-day ceasefire. "With all due respect to President Trump, our society, our people, are the ones who should decide who will be president of Ukraine," Zelensky told ABC News.
‘Find a new leader who can make a deal’
Trump called on Ukraine on Saturday to find a "new president" after Zelensky criticized a diesel agreement the American president had reached with Putin's Russia. The agreement would ease sanctions on Moscow and allow it to export diesel to countries around the world in an effort to ease shortages and curb rising prices. The deal drew sharp criticism from Ukraine and European governments, which warned that it would generate substantial revenue for Putin's government and help finance Russia's continued war against Ukraine.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump was asked about Russian attacks on Ukraine, which have intensified recently and killed dozens more civilians in two particularly deadly strikes in recent days. But rather than offer even indirect criticism of the Kremlin, he turned his anger on Zelensky. "I suggest they find a new leader who can make a deal. Because he could have made a lot of deals, and for some reason he never does. This is a war that should never have started, and I think it's time for Ukraine to find a new president," Trump said.
(Photo: Reuters, Leon Neal/Getty Images, Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)
For the past two years, Zelensky and his aides have repeatedly rejected the idea of holding elections while large numbers of Ukrainian refugees remain outside the country and Russia continues its attacks. His statement on Sunday that he would be willing to organize elections if Putin agreed to a 60-day ceasefire appears to signal an initial willingness to hold a vote even before the war ends. However, Zelensky likely knows that the Russian president is unlikely to accept such a condition.
Earlier, Zelensky also responded to Trump's demand that Ukraine stop attacking Russian oil refineries, which Kyiv has targeted in recent months. Those strikes caused a severe fuel crisis in Russia over the summer and forced Moscow, normally a major fuel exporter, to temporarily suspend diesel exports to preserve supplies for its own population. The disruption contributed to rising diesel prices, alongside increases driven by the war with Iran. For weeks, Trump has blamed Zelensky for rising global diesel prices, seeking to portray Ukraine, rather than the war with Iran, as the main cause of higher fuel costs burdening Americans ahead of next month's U.S. midterm elections.
In a response posted on X, Zelensky wrote: "Ukraine will be ready to stop striking oil refineries in Russia if Russia stops attacking our energy infrastructure. Strikes on energy infrastructure could stop today, but Putin is not interested." He added that any step toward de-escalation must be reciprocal and backed by concrete guarantees. A few hours later, Trump announced that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to an immediate energy ceasefire, but neither side has formally confirmed such an agreement. Zelensky said the announcement was "news to me," adding that Ukraine would agree to such a ceasefire if Russia did.