Ukraine Strikes Russian Oil Refinery as Zelensky Ends Energy Attack Pause

Ukraine has resumed attacks on Russian oil refineries, with a drone strike setting fire to a facility in the Ryazan region on Thursday, according to Russian authorities, after President Volodymyr Zelensky declared an end to Kyiv’s suspension of energy strikes.

The move follows growing tensions with U.S. President Donald Trump over Washington’s restrictions on military intelligence and Russia’s continued attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure.

“The block (on attacking refineries) is out. We’re done,” Zelensky told the Financial Times in an interview published on Thursday.

Ukrainian Drones Strike Ryazan Refinery

Ryazan governor Pavel Malkov reported a large-scale Ukrainian drone attack that caused a fire at an oil refinery in the region.

Emergency crews were deployed to the facility, while authorities continued assessing the extent of the damage.

Kyiv had suspended strikes on Russian refineries following Trump’s unexpected announcement of an energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine on Sunday.

The U.S. president had criticized Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil facilities, blaming them for driving up international diesel prices.

Moscow, however, continued targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure during the suspension.

Zelensky said Wednesday that Russian attacks had left 600,000 people without electricity, warning that Kyiv would not indefinitely refrain from retaliation without reciprocal restraint from Moscow.

Zelensky Accuses US of Deliberately Restricting Intelligence

Ukrainian officials said Washington had stopped providing early-warning intelligence on incoming Russian ballistic missiles in recent days.

They also reported nationwide slowdowns affecting Starshield, the military version of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite communications network, disrupting frontline operations and medium-range attacks against Russian military targets.

Musk said Wednesday that Starshield was owned and controlled by the U.S. government, which determined any restrictions on its speed.

Zelensky said Ukrainian military officials had been warned by their U.S. counterparts that intelligence support would be withheld unless Kyiv stopped attacking Russian energy infrastructure.

He rejected suggestions that the disruption resulted from technical difficulties, arguing that Washington had deliberately restricted the systems.

“It was not a technical problem, it was the will,” Zelensky told the Financial Times.

The Ukrainian president also criticized Washington’s interest in pursuing commercial agreements with Moscow and what he described as Trump’s favorable treatment of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Zelensky Demands Patriot Interceptors to Suspend Strikes

Zelensky indicated that Ukraine could reconsider its attacks on Russian energy infrastructure if Washington agreed to provide additional U.S.-made Patriot air defense interceptors.

Asked whether Kyiv would suspend the strikes to improve relations with the White House, he said additional Patriot interceptors would be the minimum acceptable condition.