Trump Presses Zelensky to Halt Strikes on Russian Refineries

President Donald Trump pressed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during a September 20 phone call to halt Ukrainian drone and missile strikes on Russian oil refineries, arguing that the attacks were worsening a global diesel shortage and driving up prices, according to a Financial Times report cited by multiple outlets. Trump has publicly claimed that Russia has lost control of its diesel oil industry as a result of the war with Ukraine, with many refineries damaged and out of commission. The call came hours after Ukraine carried out what Russian authorities described as the largest drone attack on Moscow to date. Ukrainian forces launched more than 1,000 drones at Russia on September 20 and 21, including a major strike on the Moscow Oil Refinery, a facility owned by Gazprom Neft located about 16 miles from the Kremlin. The pressure on Kyiv follows an earlier public request. On September 13, Trump declared that Zelensky had to stop knocking out diesel fuel production in Russia. He has also called for an end to the war, saying it must be ended and claiming that 25,000 people, mostly soldiers, were being killed every month.