Donald Trump has announced an “energy ceasefire” between Russia and Ukraine, but the terms remain unclear and Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the agreement was news to him.
“Effective immediately, there is an ENERGY CEASEFIRE in the War between Russia and Ukraine. Both parties have agreed. Do not break it!” Mr Trump wrote on Sunday.
Mr Zelenskyy later said Russia had continued attacking Ukrainian energy infrastructure, including a power plant in Kharkiv. He said Kyiv was awaiting details of talks between the United States and Russia and expected Vladimir Putin to honour the announcement.
“Ukraine wants peace. The question is whether Russia does,” the Ukrainian president said. “The Armed Forces of Ukraine have received all the appropriate orders.”
The White House has been asked to clarify what the proposed ceasefire covers. It was not immediately clear whether the arrangement applies to attacks on oil facilities, power stations or other energy-related infrastructure.
The announcement came shortly after Mr Zelenskyy defended Ukraine’s strikes on Russian oil refineries, following criticism from Mr Trump. The US president has repeatedly urged Kyiv to halt attacks on Russian energy infrastructure.
The two leaders have also clashed over Mr Trump’s suggestion that Ukraine should replace its president. Mr Trump said on Saturday that Ukraine needed a leader capable of reaching a deal to end the war, while also blaming Mr Zelenskyy for high diesel prices in the United States.
Mr Zelenskyy rejected that criticism, saying Russia alone was responsible for the war. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha also defended the president, saying Mr Zelenskyy had the support of the Ukrainian people and had the right to lead the country through its fight for independence.
Ukraine and Russia continue long-range strikes
The proposed energy ceasefire was announced as Russia and Ukraine continued a long-range aerial campaign, despite their armies remaining largely deadlocked on the front line.
A Ukrainian drone attack on Sunday damaged a Yandex data centre in Vladimir, east of Moscow, disrupting services including taxi bookings and banking access in parts of Russia and several other countries, according to reports cited in the source material.
Yandex said operations at the facility had been completely halted and that there were no injuries. The strike was the third attack on one of the technology company’s facilities in four days, after drones hit data centres in the Ryazan and Kaluga regions.
Russia has also continued attacks inside Ukraine. Mr Zelenskyy said 23 people, including four children, were killed in a bombing in Zaporizhzhia on Saturday, while more than 30 people were wounded.
Separately, local officials in Russia’s Bryansk region said a man was killed and two women were wounded in a Ukrainian drone strike.
