Ukraine to resume strikes on Russian oil refineries: Ban lifted. We’ve had enough, - Zelenskyy
Ukraine is set to resume strikes on Russian oil refineries following a three-day suspension of attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure. The pause was introduced at the request of the US, yet Russia continued to attack the Ukrainian power grid.
According to Censor.NET, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated this in an interview with the FT.
According to the president, Ukraine agreed to a three-day pause in strikes on Russian energy infrastructure at the request of the US. At the same time, Russia has not ceased its attacks on Ukraine.
Zelenskyy stated that over 100 Ukrainians had been killed in the past week and emphasised that the restrictions on Ukrainian strikes no longer apply.
"The ban has been lifted. We’ve had enough," said the president.
Zelenskyy mentioned intelligence data and restrictions on Starlink
The head of state also drew attention to problems with US military support. According to him, during the pause, Ukraine received no warnings from the US about ballistic missile launches, whilst restrictions on Starlink’s operations hampered operations on the front line and strikes against Russian military targets.
Zelenskyy recalled that US officials had threatened the Ukrainian military with restricting access to intelligence data if Ukraine did not stop attacking Russian energy infrastructure. The situation was later attributed to a technical glitch.
The President dismissed the theory of accidental Starlink malfunctions, describing what had happened as "divine will". Meanwhile, Donald Trump had previously denied that the exchange of intelligence data with Ukraine had been suspended.
Under what conditions would Ukraine agree to a new pause?
When asked whether Ukraine was prepared to halt its strikes again, even if Russia continued its attacks, Zelenskyy replied that this would be possible in exchange for additional American Patriot interceptor missiles.
According to the president, such a condition would be merely Ukraine’s minimum requirement.
Kyiv is therefore linking the possibility of further restrictions on strikes against Russian energy infrastructure to specific steps by the US to strengthen Ukraine’s air defences.
