Zelensky imposes refinery deal demand – WSJ

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky considers halting strikes on Russian oil refineries in exchange for expanded Starlink coverage.

The full report

A group of U.S. congressmen has proposed that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky halt strikes on Russian oil refineries in exchange for an expanded Starlink coverage zone for Ukraine's armed forces, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The lawmakers raised the idea at a meeting in Kyiv last Friday. Under the plan, the U.S. would extend the Starlink coverage zone 300 kilometers into Russian territory in exchange for Ukraine halting the strikes, allowing Ukraine's armed forces to destroy Russian launch systems.

Zelensky signaled he was willing to accept the proposal and halt strikes on Russian oil refineries for 100 days, WSJ reported. The newspaper did not say whether the congressmen were acting as envoys for U.S. President Donald Trump or were advancing the proposal on their own initiative.

Ukrainian authorities are looking for ways to strike Russian missile launch systems amid a critical shortage of Patriot missiles, which has left Ukraine effectively defenseless against Russian ballistic attacks. Zelensky, who announced yesterday that strikes on oil refineries would resume, stressed that he is willing to soften his position if allies supply Kyiv with more Patriot missiles.

The proposal comes after Trump publicly demanded for several weeks that Ukraine halt strikes on Russian oil refineries. In mid-October, he said Moscow and Kyiv had agreed to an 'energy truce,' meaning a mutual halt to attacks on oil refineries. Ukraine did refrain from striking Russian oil refineries for several days, Kyiv said, but on October 15, Zelensky announced that the strikes would resume because Russia, he said, had continued to attack Ukraine's energy infrastructure.