Zelenskyy Says Russia Struck Energy Sites After Trump's Ceasefire Claim

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday that Russian forces struck energy infrastructure after President Donald Trump declared an energy ceasefire between the two countries. Zelenskyy reported a drone hit on a power plant in Kyiv that caused outages, followed by strikes on facilities in the Kharkiv region, including a joint heating and power plant and gas production equipment.

Trump posted on Truth Social on Sunday: “Effective immediately, there is an ENERGY CEASEFIRE in the War between Russia and Ukraine. Both parties have agreed. Do not break it!” He gave no further details on the terms, timing or verification. Zelenskyy told reporters and posted that the announcement was news to him. He said Ukraine would support the ceasefire if Russia did the same, and that Kyiv had already ordered its forces accordingly while awaiting clear details from Washington.

Russian officials have not confirmed the agreement. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov earlier rejected a separate 60-day total ceasefire proposal that Zelenskyy linked to possible elections. A senior Ukrainian official told RFE/RL that Kyiv first learned of the energy proposal from Trump’s post. Previous Trump announcements of energy pauses, including one on 14 September, also failed to stop Russian strikes.

The claim arrived after Trump criticised Zelenskyy for continuing Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries. Trump has blamed those attacks for higher U.S. diesel prices and has pressed Kyiv to stop them. On Friday he announced a deal with Vladimir Putin for Russia to release 300,000 tonnes of diesel immediately, another 500,000 tonnes in November, and one million tonnes after that. Zelenskyy called the arrangement unfair and a sign of weakness.

Naftogaz, Ukraine’s state energy company, confirmed Monday that Russian forces damaged critical equipment at gas production facilities in the eastern Kharkiv region. Ukrainian air defences intercepted 89 Russian drones overnight into Monday. Separately, a Russian drone strike on a grocery store in Kharkiv on Sunday killed three people and injured others.

European leaders expressed support for an energy pause but noted the absence of Russian confirmation. UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Britain strongly supported Trump’s call. The European Union adopted nearly 1,600 new sanctions listings on Monday targeting Russia’s military-industrial complex, with more than half linked to ballistic missile production.

Trump has also said Ukraine needs a new leader who can make a deal. Zelenskyy responded that Ukrainians will choose their president and that elections require a total 60-day ceasefire so people can vote safely. He spoke at the Warsaw Security Forum via video link and repeated that Ukraine would respond if Russia does not observe any energy pause.

The gap between the public announcement and the continuing strikes leaves the practical effect unclear. Ukraine still depends on U.S. intelligence and on weapons financed by other NATO allies. Winter is approaching, and repeated hits on power and gas plants raise the cost of keeping heat and electricity running. Whether Russia treats the claim as binding will determine if the next days look different from the last ones.