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U.S. President Donald Trump decided to strike a diesel deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ignored half a dozen U.S. requests to stop attacking Russian oil refineries, a U.S. official with direct knowledge told Axios.
"Zelensky is misreading the room. By continuing to hit refineries, he is eroding the goodwill that he has built with Trump over the last six months," the official said.
The deal, announced Friday as U.S., Ukrainian and European negotiators met in Miami, has sparked a new crisis with Kyiv and threatens to derail the Trump administration’s push to end the war.
Zelenskyy had told Trump and envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner he was prepared to stop attacking Russian refineries if Russia halted attacks on Ukrainian power plants.
The U.S. official said Trump wanted Ukraine to stop unilaterally because the strikes were contributing to high gas prices in America and did not see them as equivalent to Russian strikes on Ukraine's grid.
"The attacks on the refineries cause pain in Russia, but it causes pain for the U.S., too," the official said.
During talks in Miami, Witkoff and Kushner told Ukrainian negotiators that Trump was expected to speak to Putin and lift sanctions on Russian diesel exports, the official said.
A Ukrainian official claimed the envoys threatened that Trump could cut Ukraine off from U.S. intelligence if it kept ignoring his requests.
The U.S. official denied any threat, saying the envoys told the Ukrainians the U.S. was a strong partner providing munitions and intelligence, so Kyiv should not take actions that hurt American consumers.
“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 on Truth Social.
He said another 3 million tons would follow "within a short period," depending on the condition of Russian refineries. "Diesel Prices for Americans and, indeed, the World, will be coming down, in record numbers, and fast!" Trump said, adding that "Lower prices for Americans, especially our Great Farmers, Ranchers, and Truckers, is my Greatest Priority."
Trump told reporters he was "very happy" with the deal.
"We needed oil prices already dropping like a rock," he said.
He declined to comment on Zelenskyy’s criticism.
The U.S. Treasury issued a general license allowing transactions involving Russian-origin diesel through April 7, 2027.
Zelenskyy told Axios he was blindsided by the deal. "You know, it looks like a happy birthday present for Putin. It looks absolutely terrible," he said, calling it "not fair and not honest."
"It’s not honest, really, because we tried to build our relations in the best way," he said.
"It looks like that they used this opportunity to meet us from one side, and from the other side called Putin and negotiate this," the Ukrainian president added.
Zelenskyy said he would have supported easing sanctions as part of a winter halt to attacks on energy facilities. "If the price is an energy ceasefire, this negotiation is good," he said.
"What did Trump get? That he will have more diesel? For whom? More Russian diesel for Americans? It shows weakness of the world," Zelenskyy added.
"It looks like Alaska No. 2," he said, referring to Trump’s Anchorage summit with Putin last year.
Still, Zelenskyy said Ukraine needs Washington. "It’s not simple. We need the Americans. We need the Americans to try to stop this war," he said, adding, "This decision will not help us in any way. But what is bad, I think that this decision will not help Americans."
"If you allow them to export diesel, and you think before that you have to go to Russia to negotiate, it looks that you are buying this meeting," he said, adding, "Maybe I’m not right. But it looks this way. Otherwise, why do it?"
Speaking to reporters, Zelenskyy said: "It is certainly not honest, it is certainly unworthy of our partners, and it is, in my view, a weak decision," adding that it would mean "extra money for the Russian war."
On X, he wrote: “Any easing of sanctions against Russia without a clear and lasting de-escalation agreement with Russia is an obvious weakness." "Gifts to Putin will not bring peace or any benefit to the civilized world. Russia will ‘repay’ the diesel with further terror and perfidy," he added.
Putin told Trump during their 90-minute call that Ukraine had undermined an immediate resumption of negotiations, aide Yuri Ushakov said.
"By attempting to disrupt our elections, launching a massive drone strike on Moscow, other cities, polling stations, and specific individuals involved in organizing the vote on the main election day, the Kyiv regime has essentially scuttled the possibility of an immediate resumption of the negotiation process," Ushakov said.
"Now, as the president said, we will consider when these negotiations might be resumed."
"Putin has made it clear that our position regarding the goals and objectives of the special military operation remains unchanged, as does our readiness for a political-diplomatic settlement aimed at securely achieving a long-term, sustainable peace," Ushakov said.
"I am confident that this will have a positive impact on the global economy as a whole," Putin said of Russian fuel supplies, according to the Kremlin.
Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said volumes "could rise to 3 million tons per month" in the long term.
Witkoff and Kushner are considering visiting Moscow and Kyiv next week, the U.S. official said, though it is unclear how the dispute will affect those plans.
"Putin is hitting Ukraine hard, but we think he is open to a discussion on ending the war. We want to work on a new proposal that will be good enough for him in order to get him to stop," the official said, as fallout from the diesel deal clouds the peace push.
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