Trump: Russia has ‘lost control’ of diesel industry because of Ukraine war

President Trump on Monday acknowledged major Ukrainian military strikes have hit Russian energy infrastructure hard, saying Russia has lost control of its diesel oil industry and calling for an end to the war.

“A large number of their Diesel refineries have been blown up and are, at least temporarily, out of commission,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social following a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday.

Trump said “Russia has unfortunately lost control of its Diesel Oil Industry due to its War with Ukraine” and called for the war to end.

“This ridiculous and never ending War with Ukraine must be ended. The whole World suffers as 25,000 people, mostly soldiers, are being killed each month. What a shame!”

The post came after Ukraine launched a massive drone strike against Russia overnight between Saturday and Sunday. More than 1,600 drones traveled nearly 280 miles into the country, striking oil refineries in Moscow, causing fires and triggering a pause in operations, according to an analysis by the Institute for the Study of War.

Zelensky, in a post on the social platform X, said Russia launched attacks Monday on Zaporizhzhia in the southeast, hitting residential buildings, a university facility, shopping mall and boiler house, with five people injured. A separate drone attack in the northeast city of Kharkiv killed one woman, Zelensky said.

“Russia is not backing down from its escalation and is sending many signals that it is ready to expand the war,” Zelensky said.

Trump has revived efforts to end Russia’s war in Ukraine even as the U.S. remains engaged in its war with Iran, the major consequences being disruption to global energy exports with the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz and threats to shipping in the Red Sea following a lightning offensive by the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.

Oil prices have risen as a result of the fighting, with diesel prices in the United States in particular skyrocketing.

The national average price for diesel has reached $6.27 per gallon, largely as a result of the ongoing U.S. war in Iran, though Trump has sought to cast blame on energy facilities hit as part of the Russia-Ukraine war.

The higher diesel prices are a big political problem for Trump and the GOP, with Republican senators saying it is a challenge in several competitive races.

Earlier this month, Trump dispatched his top envoys for negotiations, Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law Jared Kushner to Moscow and Kyiv for talks on ending the war.

Zelensky, in a post on X, thanked Trump for sending Kushner and Witkoff to Kyiv and said that the president agreed to meet with him on the sidelines of the U.N. summit this week. Zelensky said “the peace track is our number one priority.”

“There are ideas for de-escalation steps and for addressing fundamental security issues – energy security, food security, and the protection of human life. We are working together with the American team and are ready to take really serious steps,” Zelensky said.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio may meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the U.N. summit, Ukrainian media reported , citing Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova.