Zelensky decries US-Russia diesel deal: ‘Gifts to Putin will not bring peace’

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky lambasted President Trump’s Friday deal allowing Russia to supply the U.S. and global market with diesel, arguing the move would give the Kremlin more money to fund its war in Ukraine and undermine peace efforts.

“Gifts to Putin will not bring peace or any benefit to the civilized world,” Zelensky wrote in a lengthy post on social platform X . “Russia will ‘repay’ the diesel with further terror and perfidy. Allowing Russia to sell petroleum products is an investment in a war that must be ended, not prolonged.”

Following a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump announced that Russia would “immediately” supply 300,000 tons of diesel across the globe to mitigate skyrocketing fuel prices tied to both the Ukraine war and the U.S.’s war in Iran.

News of the agreement came as Zelensky’s negotiating team was in Florida for two days of talks with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner on a possible ceasefire, including a proposal to halt attacks on energy infrastructure.

“I have just concluded a highly successful discussion with President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, wherein it was agreed that Russia will immediately supply over 300,000 Tons of Diesel Fuel to the American and Global Marketplace, another 500,000 Tons during the month of November, and 1,000,000 Tons immediately thereafter,” Trump wrote in a Friday afternoon Truth Social post.

The Treasury Department also issued a temporary license easing sanctions on Russian diesel exports.

Zelensky questioned the timing of Trump’s announcement and suggested to reporters that the Ukrainian delegation was being used as a “smokescreen” to cover for the agreement with Russia.

“Our Ukrainian team, our negotiating team, is now in Florida for a two-day visit to hold talks with the American team on ending this terrible war, or at least on securing a ceasefire,” he said in remarks translated into English.

Ukraine’s leader continued, “And at this very moment, while our team is talking with the American team in Florida, at this very moment, the President of the United States is talking with the leader of the Kremlin, the leader of this war, the leader of this aggression.”

The war in Ukraine has waged on for over four years since Russia invaded its westward neighbor in February of 2022. Witkoff and Kushner traveled to Kyiv for the first time in early September to restart peace negotiations between the two countries, which had stalled when the U.S. entered its own military conflict.

Zelensky argued the revenue generated from Russian diesel sales “means more money for this war, more money to inflict suffering on us, without a doubt. “

“It only feeds Putin and gives him the ability to fight even more,” he said, describing the agreement as a “weak decision by strong partners.”

Trump, meanwhile, has floated the deal as a way to bring down fuel costs for American farmers, ranchers and truck drivers as energy proxies climb ahead of next month’s midterm elections.

Diesel prices averaged $6.28 per gallon as of Friday, compared with $3.68 a year earlier, according to AAA .