Trump says Russia has lost control of its diesel industry
U.S. President Donald Trump stated that Russia has lost control of its diesel industry due to the war against Ukraine, and a significant number of Russian oil refineries have been damaged and at least temporarily taken out of operation.
Trump wrote this on Truth Social on September 21. The U.S. president noted that problems in Russian oil refining have become one of the consequences of the war, and again called for its end.
"Russia, unfortunately, has lost control of its diesel industry due to the war with Ukraine. A significant number of its refineries have been blown up and, at least temporarily, taken out of operation", Trump wrote.
Trump also claimed that about 25,000 people, mostly military personnel, are supposedly dying every month because of the war. He did not provide independent confirmation of this particular estimate, so this figure is a statement by the U.S. president, not established data.
The new public statement came after Trump's phone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on September 20. According to Axios, during the call, the U.S. president repeatedly asked Zelenskyy to stop attacks on Russian oil refineries. The source told the outlet that the word "diesel" was mentioned many times during the conversation.
This is not the first such call from Trump. On September 13, he publicly stated that he had asked Zelenskyy not to strike facilities related to diesel fuel production, as he believed that Ukrainian attacks were exacerbating the global shortage. At the same time, Trump permitted strikes on other targets in Russia.
The next day, Trump wrote on Truth Social that Ukraine and Russia had allegedly agreed to refrain from striking each other's energy facilities. In response, Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine is ready to support mutual de-escalation only if Russia truly stops attacks on Ukrainian energy and other critical infrastructure.
Meanwhile, U.S. sources do not explain the record rise in diesel prices solely by Ukrainian strikes. CNN linked the sharp price increase primarily to the war in the Middle East and oil supply disruptions in early September. Later, CNN experts also cited the war with Iran, the Russo-Ukrainian war, and restrictions on oil product exports among the reasons.
Axios also noted that Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries and Russia's subsequent restriction of diesel fuel exports exacerbated the global market shortage. Russia has traditionally been one of the world's largest exporters of this type of fuel.
Trump's statement came on the eve of his meeting with Zelenskyy in New York, which is expected on September 22 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. According to Axios, the meeting will take place a few days after Trump signs a new sanctions law against Russia and approves a major deal for the supply of U.S. weapons to Ukraine.
Based on Truth Social Дональда Трампа, Axios, CNN
