U.S. President Donald Trump called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to halt long-range strikes on Russian oil refineries and diesel infrastructure on Sunday, September 13, 2026. Speaking in Ireland, Trump blamed the attacks for driving up global fuel costs after U.S. average diesel prices surpassed six dollars per gallon.
Trump Pressures Kyiv Over Diesel Shortages and Global Prices
President Donald Trump delivered a blunt message to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday while visiting his Doonbeg golf club in Ireland. Asked by reporters whether he had spoken with Zelensky following a recent conversation with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, Trump urged Kyiv to spare Russia’s fuel-producing facilities from ongoing drone attacks.
“Mr. Zelensky has to do one thing. He has to stop knocking out diesel fuel in Russia. Let him go after targets but not diesel fuel, because he’s causing a shortage of diesel fuel.”
President Donald Trump
The intervention comes as U.S. and global energy markets face severe strains. U.S. average diesel prices reached a record $6 per gallon on Friday, September 11, 2026, according to the Automobile Association. Trump argued that the Ukrainian strategy was worsening the crunch, telling reporters that there are plenty of other targets the military could pursue without harming global seaborne trade.
For months, Ukraine has targeted Russian energy infrastructure in an effort to disrupt the revenue streams and logistics fueling Moscow’s invasion, which is more than four years old. Those strikes have severely impacted Russia’s refining capacity, forcing domestic fuel rationing and prompting Moscow to impose a diesel export ban in July. However, reporting notes that Ukraine’s long-range drone strikes on Russian energy infrastructure have occurred, creating a complex diplomatic friction point as Washington simultaneously presses for an end to the war.
Global Supply Pressures and International Energy Agency Data
While the Trump administration places the blame squarely on Ukrainian drone campaigns, independent analysts and international organizations point to multiple compounding pressures on the global market. A report published by the International Energy Agency on Friday, September 11, 2026, highlighted that net exports of diesel and gasoil from Gulf countries in August stood at just over a quarter of their pre-war levels. That regional drop followed the war on Iran that curtailed oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.
Before the conflict in the Middle East began in February, combined net exports of diesel and gasoil from the Gulf and Russia accounted for nearly 45 percent of global seaborne trade. The International Energy Agency noted that disruptions to Russia’s refining system and a near-halt to product exports resulting from intensified Ukrainian operations have compounded these losses.
Economic pressures weigh heavily on American voters ahead of the midterm elections scheduled for November. While Trump claimed that the diesel shortage was driven entirely by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, international reporting notes that the energy crisis was also triggered by the war against Iran that began in February and severely restricted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz chokepoint.
Simultaneous Strikes and Diplomatic Maneuvers Across the Border
The diplomatic wrangling over diesel coincided with an escalation of aerial attacks and sabotage across the region.
Western security figures traveling by train near the Ukraine-Poland border also found themselves in the crosshairs. Ukraine’s rail operator, Ukrzaliznytsia, reported that a Russian drone targeted a train near Yahodyn shortly after a separate diplomatic transport carrying former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, former CIA Director David Petraeus, and former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt had passed through the area.
“I don’t know what warped logic drove Putin to blow up a stationary Ukrainian locomotive on the Polish border this morning. When are we going to give them the air defences they need?”
Boris Johnson, former U.K. Prime Minister
The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed the operation, stating that its forces launched strikes on railway infrastructure in Ukraine’s western region used to transport military cargo from European countries.
