Zelensky canceled restrictions on strikes on Russian refineries

Ukraine will resume strikes on Russian oil refineries after a three-day pause during which Moscow continued to attack Ukrainian energy infrastructure. President Vladimir Zelensky said that restrictions on such operations are no longer in effect.

The head of state announced this in an interview with the Financial Times, published on October 15.

"The ban has been lifted. We've had enough", Zelensky said, commenting on the decision to resume attacks on Russian oil infrastructure.

According to the president, Ukraine refrained from strikes on Russian energy facilities for three days, trying to fulfill the terms of the "energy truce" announced by U.S. President Donald Trump on October 11.

However, Russia did not stop shelling Ukrainian power plants and other energy facilities. Zelensky emphasized that over the past week, Russian attacks have resulted in the deaths of more than a hundred civilians.

The president also criticized Washington's actions, which demanded an end to Ukrainian strikes on refineries while simultaneously easing sanctions on Russian diesel fuel. In Zelensky's opinion, new energy agreements between the U.S. and Russia create additional opportunities for funding the Russian war.

"Business between the U.S. and Russia is an interesting thing. The question is when the next deal will be. Possibly regarding gas. It will certainly be gas", the Ukrainian president noted.

Zelensky also linked the aggravation of relations with Washington to problems with the transfer of American intelligence information and restrictions on the operation of satellite communications Starlink and Starshield. He previously confirmed that the Ukrainian military received warnings about a possible halt to intelligence cooperation due to attacks on Russian refineries.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump denied halting intelligence sharing, and representatives of his administration rejected involvement in satellite communications restrictions.

According to Zelensky, Ukraine could agree again to stop strikes on Russian energy, but only on the condition of receiving additional American interceptor missiles for Patriot systems.

Meanwhile, on October 14, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Lukashenko claimed about alleged Ukrainian attacks on oil refineries in Saratov and Ryazan regions. Ukrainian presidential adviser Dmitry Lytton called these messages false. The investigative publication The Insider also found no evidence of attacks on these facilities.

At the same time, on the night of October 15, the monitoring Telegram channel Exilenova+ reported, citing local residents, about a possible fire at the Ryazan refinery. The channel's authors assumed that the observed glow could be a flare associated with a drone attack in the region. Independent confirmation of a hit on the facility or damage to its equipment is not yet available.

Based on materials:Financial Times, Bloomberg, The Insider