Zelensky Says Ukraine Ready for 'De-Escalatory Steps'

With international oil prices climbing again, Trump had at the weekend berated Ukraine’s attacks on Russian refineries, blaming them for causing a shortage in diesel fuel.

In one of his surprise social media posts, the U.S. leader announced on Sept. 14 that “Ukraine has agreed not to hit Russian Energy targets. Russia has agreed to do, likewise!”

Russia made no immediate comment. But in his nightly address, Zelensky highlighted “a strong proposal from the United States regarding a mutual halt to strikes on critical infrastructure.”

He added: “If this can become the first de-escalatory step, stopping Russian strikes on our critical infrastructure, and ours in response, then Ukraine is ready to support de-escalation.”

Zelensky said “we see that the Russians are feeling pressure because of our precise responses against Russia’s war economy.” 

He noted that “so far no one has seen any genuine desire from Russia to move toward ending the war.”

“But if our American partners succeed in securing a real readiness from Russia to stop this war of destroying lives, and to do so sincerely and for the long term, Ukraine will make its own de-escalatory steps.”

Trump has insisted that the Russia-Ukraine war, and not the conflict with Iran, was driving up fuel costs for Americans who vote in crucial midterm elections in November.

A previous push by Trump for a ceasefire has been sidelined by the U.S.-Israeli conflict against Iran, now in its seventh month. U.S. envoys went to Moscow and Kiev earlier this month without announcing a breakthrough.

While Ukraine has hit refineries deep inside Russia, Zelensky has stepped up calls for allies to provide more anti-missile defenses as Russia intensifies its attacks.

Russian strikes on Ukraine’s rail network are worsening each week, the CEO of the state Ukrainian Railways operator told AFP on Sept. 14, after a strike hit a train frequently used by diplomats near the Polish border at the weekend.

“It’s growing exponentially. Each month, each week is generally worse than the previous one,” said Oleksandr Pertsovsky.

European Union countries on Sept. 14 delayed a deadline for prolonging sanctions on Russia after France pushed for billionaire Alisher Usmanov to be removed from a blacklist, diplomats said.

An EU list of almost 3,000 individuals and entities, which needs to be extended every six months, was set to expire by Sept. 16.

However, ambassadors from the 27 EU member states pushed back the deadline one week after the late efforts from Paris to remove 73-year-old Uzbek-Russian metals tycoon Usmanov drew opposition, the diplomats said.

The Financial Times reported, quoting people familiar with the issue, that France was making the push as part of a prisoner release deal involving French citizens held in Azerbaijan.