President Donald Trump said he is 'not a big fan' of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky after Kyiv resumed attacks on Russian oil infrastructure. Zelensky cited continued Russian strikes and US intelligence restrictions as reasons for ending the pause.
U.S. President Donald Trump criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday, stating, "I’m not a big fan of Zelensky," following Ukraine’s decision to resume strikes on Russian oil refineries. The comments came during an interview with Newsmax, where Trump also described Zelensky as "not a good guy for us to deal with."
The tension follows a unilateral announcement by Trump on Oct. 11 regarding an "energy ceasefire" between Russia and Ukraine. According to CNN, neither Moscow nor Kyiv had publicly confirmed the measure at the time. While Ukraine initially paused its strikes on Russian energy infrastructure, President Zelensky announced on Oct. 15 that the pause was over, telling the Financial Times, "We’re done."
Zelensky stated that he had halted attacks for three days but resumed them because Russia continued to strike Ukraine’s energy facilities. On Thursday, Russia’s Ministry of Defense reported that Ukraine attempted a large-scale attack on a refinery in Ryazan. Pavel Malkov, the governor of Ryazan, confirmed a fire at an oil refinery, stating, "The material damage is now being assessed."
In his interview, Trump blamed former President Barack Obama for "forcing Ukraine to let Russia annex the Crimean Peninsula in 2014." Trump argued that this event marked the moment Russian President Vladimir Putin stopped respecting the United States due to the lack of a strong American response. Trump also criticized former President Joe Biden for providing billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine.
Trump expressed skepticism about Zelensky’s commitment to peace, saying, "He says he wants to settle, but he doesn't." He noted that while both leaders want the conflict to end, he finds it "more difficult to deal with" Zelensky than Putin. Trump has recently called for Zelensky to step down and for Ukraine to hold a new presidential election, a proposal Zelensky has linked to a two-month ceasefire, which Moscow opposes.
The diplomatic rift is compounded by reports of restricted U.S. support. Zelensky told the Financial Times that Ukrainian military officials were warned by U.S. counterparts: "if you will not stop [the energy strikes], we will block intelligence." Additionally, Ukraine reported restrictions on Starshield, the military-grade version of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite network.
Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, stated that Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the U.S. government, meaning any limits are up to the U.S. military and president. Musk added that Starlink is a commercial service limited to civilian or defensive activities and "cannot be used for offensive military action." A Ukrainian Defense Ministry source told CNN that Starshield operations had resumed but that the ministry was investigating the causes of the restrictions. Zelensky said on Thursday that Russia launched more than 850 attack drones since midnight "at a time when the speed of our defensive capabilities is being artificially restricted."
The resumption of strikes on energy infrastructure threatens to escalate the conflict further as winter approaches. The breakdown in trust between Washington and Kyiv, highlighted by Trump’s public criticism and the suspension of certain intelligence and satellite services, complicates Ukraine’s defensive capabilities against Russian aerial attacks. Meanwhile, Trump’s push for a diesel deal with Moscow and his criticism of Zelensky signal a potential shift in U.S. policy that has drawn bipartisan criticism and concern from European allies.
Sources
This article was drafted with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Company claims are reported as claims. Cover image is AI-generated.
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