Despite Trump's Pressure, Ukraine and Russia Continue Intense Exchange of Strikes on Energy Facilities

Russia and Ukraine continue their intensive exchange of strikes targeting energy facilities, ignoring U.S. President Donald Trump's mediation for a truce.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticized on the 15th local time that "Russia continues to attack our energy sector, regular logistics, and critical infrastructure."

Other Ukrainian government officials reported that Russian attack targets included gas stations in the capital city of Kyiv and specific energy infrastructure in the Zaporizhzhia region.

Zaporizhzhia is home to Ukraine's nuclear power plant.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Energy stated that partial blackouts are being implemented in five regions due to Russian attacks.

Ukraine also continued its counterattacks against Russia.

President Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine attacked the Syzran oil refinery and a drone production facility in southern Russia.


According to regional authorities in Russia, the Samara region along the Volga River was also attacked.

This region is densely packed with large oil refineries.

This comes less than a day after President Trump claimed an "energy truce agreement," with both sides precisely targeting each other's energy facilities.

Furthermore, Russia and Ukraine drew a line, stating that they have never agreed to the "energy truce" mentioned by President Trump as a fait accompli.

Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov welcomed the halt of attacks on energy infrastructure as a "very good idea" during a press conference.

However, he argued that even if such an agreement were implemented, it would not have a significant impact on the energy market, contrary to President Trump's assertions.


President Zelenskyy also stated in a speech that he would accept the proposal "only if our U.S. partners guarantee that Russia is truly ready to stop the war."

Previously, President Trump blamed the Russia-Ukraine war for rising international oil prices on his social media platform Truth Social, claiming that "Ukraine has agreed not to strike Russian energy targets, and Russia has agreed to do the same."

However, as recent fighting has fallen into a stalemate, both sides have increasingly expanded attacks targeting each other's energy and logistics infrastructure.

As a result, severe fuel shortages have occurred in various parts of Russia, and large-scale food shortages have also broken out in Ukraine due to strikes on energy facilities and warehouses.

(Photo: Getty Images, AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.