Zelensky meets Trump, says Ukraine ready for energy truce with Ru

Volodymyr Zelensky said Kyiv was ready to consider any format of an energy ceasefire with Moscow after a 40-minute meeting with US President Donald Trump at UN headquarters in New York.

Energy ceasefire discussed

The Ukrainian leader said on Tuesday that he and Trump discussed efforts to end the four-year-old war with Russia, including a potential bilateral ceasefire covering energy-related targets.

Speaking to the media after the meeting, Zelensky said Kyiv was ready for any format of an energy truce with Moscow.

He also said there had been no discussion of Ukraine unilaterally halting its attacks on Russian oil refineries.

The proposal comes after the US president announced such a truce last week.

Russia hit petrol stations in Kyiv the next day, while Ukraine bombed an oil refinery.

Fuel prices add pressure

Trump’s approval ratings have slumped to a record low amid high fuel prices ahead of the US midterm elections in November.

In recent days, Trump had expressed concern over the extensive damage done to Russia’s fuel-processing capacity.

He said that damage was stoking diesel prices globally.

The discussion placed energy infrastructure at the centre of the latest diplomatic effort around the war, with Zelensky framing Kyiv’s position as openness to a bilateral ceasefire format rather than a unilateral halt to strikes.

Source: South China Morning Post