The dispute follows a series of tensions over an "energy ceasefire" announced by Donald Trump, which the Kremlin says is ill-defined and not binding. Ukraine previously launched over 500 drones against an oil depot in Valuyki on Oct. 13, the first such strike since Trump's ceasefire proposal. Zelenskyy told NPR that the U.S. government warned his generals that intelligence sharing would be severed and the PURL weapons mechanism for European arms purchases frozen if Kyiv continued targeting Russian refineries.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
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Russia Blames Ukraine for 2 Refinery Hits After Energy Truce
War6 days ago
Kyiv has denied recent allegations that Ukrainian forces targeted fuel processing plants in two Russian regions. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak claimed that oil refineries in Saratov and Ryazan were attacked, asserting that Ukraine is showing no movement toward an energy truce. An advisor to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed these reports as fake, while U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have reportedly urged the Ukrainian delegation to halt strikes on Russian oil infrastructure.
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