Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has strongly criticised US President Donald Trump’s agreement allowing Russia to supply diesel to the United States and global markets, arguing that the move would provide Moscow with additional funds to sustain its war against Ukraine and undermine ongoing efforts to secure peace.
In a lengthy post on social media platform X, Zelensky said that allowing Russia to generate revenue through petroleum product exports would strengthen the Kremlin’s ability to continue military operations rather than encourage an end to the conflict.
“Gifts to Putin will not bring peace or any benefit to the civilised world,” Zelensky wrote.
“Russia will ‘repay’ the diesel with further terror and perfidy. Allowing Russia to sell petroleum products is an investment in a war that must be ended, not prolonged,” he added.
Trump on Friday (local time) announced a major agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin under which Moscow would supply millions of tonnes of diesel to the United States and global markets, saying the move would bring down fuel prices sharply.
Peace never comes through weakness. Today, representatives of the U.S. Congress were in Kyiv – a bipartisan delegation – and I am grateful to them for visiting Ukraine at such a difficult time. They asked: what is needed to end the war? The answer must be strong. There must be sanctions under the Lindsey Graham bill, there must be support for Ukraine in protecting lives, and there must be pressure on Russia for its war. And today, there was a conversation between the leaders of America and Russia. A conversation that leads to something different.
Recently, there was a European decision to lift sanctions on Russian oligarchs. Since then, Russian strikes and the torment of people have only increased. This past week alone, there was a brutal Russian missile strike on a residential building in Pryluky, aerial bombs were dropped on Kramatorsk – on ordinary city buses – and there have been constant attacks on Kyiv’s energy infrastructure and on the life-sustaining infrastructure in Dnipro, Kharkiv, Odesa, and our other cities. Dozens of people have been killed and hundreds wounded.
The Russians are compensating for their inability to achieve their objectives on the battlefield with this kind of terror. This year, Russia is weaker on the battlefield than at any other point in the war. That is why Putin is relying on terror. That is why he is relying on attempts to strike backroom deals to secure some form of pressure relief for Russia, in order to buy more time and more opportunities for war.
Any easing of sanctions against Russia without a clear and lasting de-escalation agreement with Russia is an obvious weakness. It plays into Russia’s hands – allowing it to kill more, wage war for longer, have even less respect for America, and inflict even greater losses and damage on the world.
Ukraine is ready to take symmetrical de-escalatory steps, and the American team knows our position. Our strikes on Russian oil refineries and other oil facilities are a response to Russia’s years-long campaign of terror against Ukraine’s energy sector. Ukraine will not set Russian oil refineries on fire if Russia does not destroy our energy infrastructure. This is the kind of agreement we are proposing to America, and we believe the United States has enough power to achieve such a compromise.
Gifts to Putin will not bring peace or any benefit to the civilized world. Russia will “repay” the diesel with further terror and perfidy. Allowing Russia to sell petroleum products is an investment in a war that must be ended, not prolonged. What is needed is real de-escalation with Russia on a reciprocal basis.
We count on America’s fair support for our defense of life, for our defense of people in Ukraine – and on the United States having a correspondingly strong conversation with Russia. A strong one, not a weak one.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) October 9, 2026
The announcement came at a time when a Ukrainian negotiating delegation was in Florida for two days of discussions with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. The talks focused on possible arrangements to end the war, including a proposal for a ceasefire that would halt attacks on energy infrastructure.
In a post published on Truth Social Friday afternoon, Trump described his conversation with Putin as highly successful and outlined the proposed scale of Russian diesel supplies to international markets.
“I have just concluded a highly successful discussion with President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, wherein it was agreed that Russia will immediately supply over 300,000 Tons of Diesel Fuel to the American and Global Marketplace, another 500,000 Tons during the month of November, and 1,000,000 Tons immediately thereafter,” Trump wrote.
The US Treasury Department also issued a temporary licence that eases sanctions on Russian diesel exports, facilitating the proposed supply arrangement.
Zelensky questioned the timing of Trump’s announcement, particularly because the Ukrainian delegation was engaged in discussions with American officials on possible ways to bring the conflict to an end. He suggested that the Ukrainian team’s presence in Florida could be serving as a “smokescreen” for the agreement reached between Washington and Moscow.
Speaking to reporters, the Ukrainian President stressed that his country’s representatives were in the United States to discuss ways to stop the fighting and secure a ceasefire, making the announcement of the Russian diesel deal particularly concerning for Kyiv.
He then pointed to the contrast between the ongoing negotiations involving Ukrainian and American officials and the simultaneous communication between Trump and Putin, whom he described as “the leader of this war”.
Zelensky argued that the revenue Russia would earn from diesel exports could directly contribute to sustaining its military campaign and prolonging the suffering caused by the conflict.
“Means more money for this war, more money to inflict suffering on us, without a doubt,” he said, referring to the financial benefits Moscow could obtain from the agreement.
“It only feeds Putin and gives him the ability to fight even more,” Zelensky said, describing the agreement as a “weak decision by strong partners”.
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