Trump Urges Ukraine to Stop Targeting Russian Refineries Amid Rising Fuel Prices

Trump said the diesel disruption was not being caused by events in the Middle East but by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, adding that he did not want Ukraine to strike diesel facilities because it was “hurting the world.”
Ukraine’s drone campaign has reportedly caused fuel rationing in parts of Russia, despite Russia being one of the world’s largest oil and gas exporters.
The overnight escalation also included reported Russian drone attacks on the Ukrainian Black Sea port of Odesa and a fire near Ukraine’s border crossing with Poland.
Russia has intensified its air campaign against Ukraine, using ballistic missiles and jet-powered drones while targeting the Ukrainian power grid ahead of winter; Ukrainian officials said the attacks are intended in part to demoralize civilians.
The Sloviansk-on-Kuban refinery is located in Russia’s Krasnodar region across from Crimea, and Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence Directorate said the fire was visible from several dozen kilometres away.
President Donald Trump has called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to stop striking Russian oil refineries and diesel infrastructure, saying the attacks are driving up fuel prices globally and "hurting the world." The Report reported that Trump argued Ukraine should pursue other military targets but avoid operations that disrupt diesel supplies. Ukraine maintains that attacking Russia's oil and gas industry is crucial, since those revenues finance Moscow's war effort.
Ukrainian forces struck a major refinery in Sloviansk-on-Kuban overnight, triggering a large fire visible from dozens of kilometers away, according to Reuters. The attack killed at least two people and injured 14 in Russia's Tatarstan region, home to major oil refineries. Russia claimed to have intercepted hundreds of Ukrainian drones in coordinated overnight strikes across multiple regions.
Trump says Ukraine's refinery strikes are the root cause of rising diesel prices worldwide, not events in the Middle East. Dagens reported that U.K. diesel prices have climbed above $6 per gallon. Trump stated he does not want Ukraine targeting diesel facilities because the shortages are "hurting the world," suggesting the U.S. could soften its stance on other military support if Ukraine complies.
Ukraine's drone campaign has forced fuel rationing across parts of Russia despite Moscow being one of the world's largest oil and gas exporters. The strikes demonstrate Ukraine's ability to degrade Russian logistics even as Russia pours resources into its war effort.
Kyiv rejects Trump's call to halt refinery attacks, maintaining that Russia's oil and gas industry directly finances and sustains the military campaign. Ukraine's Defence Intelligence Directorate says disrupting fuel supplies weakens Russia's ability to wage war. The Sloviansk-on-Kuban refinery strike caused significant damage and a visible fire, marking another successful operation in Ukraine's energy infrastructure campaign.
Ukraine's strategy targets Russian economic capacity rather than military units. By crippling refineries, Ukraine aims to force Moscow to divert resources from combat operations and logistics. The overnight fire at Sloviansk-on-Kuban was visible from several dozen kilometers away, indicating substantial damage to a key facility.
Russia has escalated its aerial assault on Ukraine, launching ballistic missiles and jet-powered drones while targeting the power grid as winter approaches. Shoreline Media reported that Russian strikes hit the Black Sea port of Odesa and areas near Ukraine's border crossing with Poland. Ukrainian officials say Moscow is attempting to demoralize civilians through infrastructure destruction.
Russia claims to have intercepted hundreds of Ukrainian drones overnight. The coordinated Ukrainian attacks killed two people and injured 14 in Tatarstan, a region critical to Russian oil refining and petrochemical production. The escalation reflects deepening tensions between direct military operations and economic warfare.
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