Trump Announces ‘Energy Ceasefire’ as Russian Strikes Continue in Ukraine

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that Russia and Ukraine have agreed to an “energy ceasefire” in the ongoing conflict, though no specific details were provided regarding the terms or duration of the truce. The declaration was made via a brief social media post in which Trump urged both sides to comply immediately, stating simply, “Do not break it!”

However, Ukrainian officials quickly reported that Russian forces continued to target energy sites following the announcement. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that a power plant in Kharkiv was attacked in the evening, noting that Ukrainian skies had been filled with Russian drones throughout the day. Despite the devastation, Zelenskyy described Trump’s announcement as “good news for everyone” but emphasized that Russia was still striking energy infrastructure in both Kyiv and Kharkiv.

“Unfortunately, Ukrainian skies have been infested with Russian ‘shaheds’ all day today,” Zelenskyy said in an evening address. He added that Ukraine was prepared to refrain from attacking Russian energy facilities if Moscow showed similar restraint, stating, “We count on the same readiness from Russia.”

This development follows a similar claim by Trump on September 14, when he asserted that both nations had agreed to avoid hitting each other’s energy grids. That proposal did not result in any tangible de-escalation. Russian President Vladimir Putin has previously rejected Ukrainian overtures for de-escalation, a pattern Zelenskyy highlighted by saying Putin’s response to past proposals had consistently been “nyet.”

Tensions between Washington and Kyiv have also intensified recently. Trump suggested over the weekend that Ukraine requires a new president, blaming Zelenskyy for high diesel prices in the United States. In response, Zelenskyy proposed holding elections if Russia agreed to a 60-day ceasefire, although such a vote is currently prohibited under martial law. The exchange occurred as Ukraine continued its own strikes against Russian targets, including a drone attack on a Yandex data center in Vladimir on Sunday.

The strike on the Yandex facility, which operates Russia’s most popular search engine and various digital services, caused widespread outages across dozens of Russian cities and neighboring countries. Users reported difficulties accessing taxi services, banking platforms, and shopping sites. This was the third attack on Yandex infrastructure in four days, following strikes on facilities in the Ryazan and Kaluga regions earlier in the week.

Meanwhile, the human toll of the war continued to mount elsewhere. Search and rescue operations concluded in Zaporizhzhia after a Russian bombing on Saturday killed 23 people, including four children, according to regional officials. In Russia’s Bryansk region, a Ukrainian drone strike resulted in one death and two injuries among civilians.