Ukraine Halts Tanker Strikes at Novorossiysk After US Request

Ukraine has halted its campaign of drone strikes on oil tankers using the critical Black Sea port of Novorossiysk following a direct request from U.S. Vice President JD Vance, according to Ukrainian officials. The request was made during a phone call between Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on July 31, 2026. Washington expressed alarm that the attacks were destabilizing global oil markets and harming American companies involved in transporting Kazakh crude oil through the port.

The port of Novorossiysk hosts a terminal for the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), a vital pipeline that carries oil from Kazakhstan to world markets. The CPC handles approximately 80% of Kazakhstan's oil exports and nearly 2% of global crude supplies. U.S. energy giants Chevron and ExxonMobil hold stakes in the consortium and in the Kazakh oil fields it serves. Ukrainian strikes in July had forced repeated shutdowns of the pipeline, causing shipping and insurance rates to more than double and contributing to a 14% drop in Kazakhstan's oil production for the month.

A senior Ukrainian official stated that Kyiv "very carefully listen[s] to our American partners," and that the CPC's status...