Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated on Monday that his nation is prepared to de-escalate the conflict with Russia, provided Moscow agrees to halt its attacks on Ukraine’s critical infrastructure. The comment came shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump announced that both Kyiv and Moscow had agreed to stop striking each other’s energy targets.
Trump took to social media over the weekend to declare the mutual agreement, criticizing Ukraine’s recent strikes on Russian refineries and blaming them for driving up international oil prices and causing diesel fuel shortages. “Ukraine has agreed not to hit Russian Energy targets. Russia has agreed to do, likewise!” Trump wrote.
While the Kremlin offered no immediate response, Zelensky addressed the development during his daily video briefing. He described the U.S. initiative as a “strong proposal” for a reciprocal pause on attacks against vital infrastructure. “If this can become the first de-escalatory step… then Ukraine is ready to support de-escalation,” Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian leader emphasized that while Russia feels pressure from Kyiv’s precise strikes on its war economy, he has yet to observe a genuine desire from Moscow to end the war. However, he added that if American partners can secure a sincere, long-term commitment from Russia to stop the conflict, Ukraine will take corresponding de-escalatory measures.
Meanwhile, the intensity of Russian attacks on Ukraine’s rail network continues to escalate. Oleksandr Pertsovsky, CEO of the state-run Ukrainian Railways, told AFP that damage is worsening weekly. This follows a weekend strike on a train used by diplomats near the Polish border. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk revealed that Warsaw intercepted intelligence suggesting Moscow was planning further attacks on border crossings.
In a separate diplomatic development, EU nations delayed the deadline for extending sanctions against Russia by one week. The delay followed France’s push to remove billionaire Alisher Usmanov from the blacklist. Reports indicate France is pursuing the removal as part of a prisoner exchange deal involving French citizens detained in Azerbaijan. The current EU sanctions list, comprising nearly 3,000 individuals and entities, was scheduled to expire on Wednesday.
It is quite surprising that France is pushing to remove a sanctioned billionaire from the EU list. Seems like a complicated prisoner swap angle.
I wonder how much of this is genuine diplomacy and how much is just optics following Trump’s announcement.
Zelensky’s condition seems reasonable, but does Russia actually intend to honor a pause? Recent strikes suggest otherwise.