Donald Trump said on September 27 that he once again urged Volodymyr Zelensky to scale back Ukraine's strikes on Russian oil refineries, citing rising global diesel prices. The two met in New York during the UN General Assembly last week.

Trump told reporters he told Zelensky, "You gotta take it easy on the refineries," and claimed Zelensky replied, "Well, we'll probably do that." Before the meeting, Trump pressed Zelensky in a phone call focused on "diesel, diesel… diesel," per a senior Ukrainian official cited by the Financial Times.

Ukraine has not agreed to anything. An official told the Kyiv Independent that Kyiv would stop hitting refineries only if Russia also observes an energy truce. Secretary of State Marco Rubio backed an "energy infrastructure ceasefire" sparing both sides' energy targets.

Ukrainian strikes have intensified since 2025: a Russian refinery was hit on average once every three days in early 2026, per the IEA. But the Kyiv Independent notes little evidence Ukrainian strikes drive the diesel surge; the US-Israeli war with Iran has affected supplies far more, and the drop in Russian exports equals about 4% of seaborne diesel trade.

Trump also said the US is weighing a diesel export ban. Ukrainian drones meanwhile hit Krasnodar fuel depots on September 28, sparking fires at three civilian firms.