Ukraine Vows to Keep Striking Russian Refineries Despite Trump Deal

According to a report by Kyiv Post on Saturday, October 10, 2026, Ukraine has vowed to continue long-range drone attacks on Russian oil refineries despite an agreement between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin to supply diesel to the United States and international markets.

According to the Financial Times, a senior Ukrainian official rejected calls from Washington to suspend attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure, signalling that Kyiv would maintain its strategy of targeting facilities that support Moscow’s war effort.

“We will burn RussianRussian refineries,” the official told the newspaper.

The declaration comes amid questions over Russia’s ability to fulfil the diesel supply commitments announced by Trump, as repeated Ukrainian drone strikes have reportedly disrupted the country’s oil refining industry.

Energy analysts have raised concerns that damage to Russian refineries could limit Moscow’s ability to increase exports, regardless of the US decision to ease restrictions on Russian diesel transactions.

According to data cited by the Financial Times, Russian refineries are operating at approximately 60 per cent of their installed capacity because of shutdowns, emergency repairs and equipment shortages linked to Ukrainian attacks.

Michelle Brouhard, head of policy and geopolitical risk at energy intelligence firm Kpler, questioned how Russia would meet the proposed supply commitments.

“The biggest question for me is: where are they going to get the diesel from?” she said, adding that Russia’s main challenge was refining capacity rather than finding export markets.

Data from Kpler indicate that Russia exported an average of 2.6 million metric tonnes of diesel monthly by sea before 2025.

However, shipments reportedly declined sharply in 2026 as Ukrainian drone attacks damaged key refining units, processing facilities and fuel storage infrastructure across European Russia and western Siberia.

The disruptions have affected Russia’s ability to process crude oil into petroleum products, raising concerns about domestic supplies and the country’s capacity to meet international demand.

In July, the Russian government introduced restrictions on petroleum product exports to prevent domestic shortages and contain inflationary pressures.

Apart from limited exceptional shipments, seaborne diesel exports have reportedly been severely curtailed.

The United States, meanwhile, has not imported Russian diesel since July 2022, following sanctions imposed after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February of that year.

Before the restrictions took effect, US purchases of Russian diesel were relatively small, averaging approximately 77,000 metric tonnes monthly when imports occurred. Shipments peaked at 210,000 metric tonnes in January 2022, according to the figures cited by the Financial Times.

The dispute follows Trump’s announcement that Russia had agreed to supply more than 300,000 metric tonnes of diesel immediately, followed by another 500,000 tonnes in November and an additional one million tonnes thereafter.

The US president also suggested that deliveries could eventually reach three million tonnes within a relatively short period, although he acknowledged that the condition of Russian refineries could affect the supply.

Trump said the arrangement, alongside US naval operations in the Strait of Hormuz, would help reduce fuel prices for American consumers and ease pressure on international energy markets.

Fuel prices have come under renewed pressure amid disruptions linked to the US-Israeli conflict with Iran and uncertainty surrounding energy shipments through the Middle East.

Following the announcement, the US Treasury Department issued a general licence authorising transactions involving Russian diesel through April 7, 2027.

The exemption came only three weeks after Trump signed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 into law on September 18. The legislation seeks to expand penalties targeting Russia’s energy, banking and defence sectors.

The decision to permit Russian diesel transactions has therefore raised questions about Washington’s broader sanctions policy and its efforts to pressure Moscow over the war in Ukraine.

Russia had previously sought greater access to international fuel markets following its July export restrictions. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov had argued that Russian supplies could help moderate global energy prices if Moscow were allowed to sell its products more freely.

Trump has repeatedly urged Ukraine to suspend attacks on Russian petroleum facilities, blaming the strikes for contributing to higher diesel prices.

Kyiv, however, views Russia’s energy infrastructure as a significant source of revenue for financing its military operations. Ukrainian officials have consequently maintained that attacks on refineries and other strategic facilities are part of efforts to weaken Moscow’s ability to sustain the war.

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