'We're Done': Zelenskyy Lifts 'Energy Ceasefire', to Resume Strikes on Russian Energy Infrastructure

Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has declared an end to Kyiv's pause on strikes against Russian energy infrastructure, saying Ukraine will resume attacks on Russian oil refineries after accusing Moscow of violating the US-announced "energy ceasefire".

He also accused Washington of disrupting intelligence-sharing and Starlink satellite connectivity amid intensifying Russian assaults.

"The block (on attacking refineries) is out. We're done," Zelenskyy told the Financial Times in an interview on Thursday.

Zelenskyy's remarks signal a renewed focus on Russian energy infrastructure, which Kyiv has increasingly targeted as part of its campaign against Moscow's ability to finance the ongoing conflict.

The Ukrainian President said Kyiv had halted attacks on Russian energy facilities for three days at Washington's request, even as Russian forces continued striking Ukrainian infrastructure.

The latest development follows US President Donald Trump's October 11 announcement of an immediate "energy ceasefire" between Russia and Ukraine, under which both sides were expected to stop targeting energy infrastructure.

"Effective immediately, there is an ENERGY CEASEFIRE in the War between Russia and Ukraine. Both parties have agreed. Do not break it!" Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

However, the arrangement came under strain after Zelenskyy accused Russia of launching a large-scale overnight assault on Ukraine's energy and critical infrastructure, leaving at least 600,000 people without electricity.

In a post on X on Wednesday, Zelenskyy said Russian forces had used ballistic missiles and attack drones to target energy facilities in Kyiv, the Kyiv region and Kharkiv. He added that the strikes caused extensive damage to equipment and infrastructure at 26 power system facilities and four oil and gas sector facilities.

The Ukrainian President's latest announcement came amid growing tensions over the scope of the proposed ceasefire and the role of the United States in influencing Kyiv's military decisions.

Zelenskyy also accused Washington of warning Ukrainian officials that intelligence-sharing could be suspended unless Kyiv stopped attacking Russian refineries.

According to the Ukrainian President, the subsequent disruption was presented as a technical problem.

He also rejected suggestions that interruptions to Starlink satellite internet services were accidental, amid reports that restrictions on satellite communications had affected Ukrainian military operations.

"It was not a technical problem; it was the will," Zelenskyy said during the interview.

The dispute has brought renewed attention to Ukraine's reliance on Starlink, the satellite internet service operated by Elon Musk's SpaceX, for communications and military operations, including reconnaissance and interceptor drones, intelligence gathering and logistical coordination.

The controversy intensified after Ukrainian officials reported disruptions affecting Starlink and Starshield connectivity amid continued Russian attacks.

Musk defended the distinction between the two systems in a post on X, saying decisions concerning Starshield restrictions rested with the US military and the US President.

Zelenskyy has warned that disruptions to satellite connectivity could have serious consequences for Ukraine's ability to defend itself against Russian attacks, particularly as the country faces continued strikes on critical infrastructure.

Meanwhile, Zelenskyy stated that another massive wave of Russian drone attacks claimed that more than 850 Shahed drones had been launched between midnight and 9 am on Thursday, killing six people across the country.

In a post on X, Zelenskyy said emergency services and repair crews were continuing to respond to the aftermath of Russian attacks across dozens of Ukrainian cities and communities.

"Emergency services are still providing assistance in dozens of our cities and communities. Repair crews and rescuers are working to deal with the aftermath of Russian attacks. For practically all of yesterday and throughout last night, a massive “shahed” attack was underway. The drones kept coming in waves, and there was not a single hour when our skies were clear of them," Zelenskyy said.

"From midnight yesterday through 9 a.m. today, there had already been more than 850 “shaheds” – and this comes precisely at a time when the speed of our defensive capabilities is being artificially restricted," he added.

The Ukrainian President said the country's air defences had intercepted some of the incoming drones, but several managed to hit their targets.
"We managed to shoot down some of the “shaheds.” But unfortunately, there were also dozens of hits," he said.

Zelenskyy identified the Kirovohrad region as one of the areas subjected to the heaviest attacks, while strikes were also reported in Kyiv and the surrounding region, Dnipro, Odesa, Rivne, Kharkiv, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi, Poltava and Ivano-Frankivsk.

"Three people were killed in Kropyvnytskyi and three more in the Dnipro region. My condolences to their families and loved ones," he said.

Accusing Moscow of deliberately escalating its attacks, Zelenskyy linked the latest assault to sanctions relief for Russia and efforts to pressure Ukraine.

"It is obvious that Russia deliberately chose to escalate its attacks after receiving sanctions relief and seeing attempts to pressure Ukraine. Russia exploits every such opportunity and must be held accountable for what it does," he said.

Ukraine's decision to resume strikes also comes as Kyiv has significantly intensified its campaign against Russian oil infrastructure.

According to Ukraine's Defence Ministry, Ukrainian forces struck 12 major Russian refineries in September alone.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) reported that, by late August, only five of Russia's 32 major refineries had escaped Ukrainian drone attacks, with some facilities struck as many as 15 times since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has defended Ukraine's strikes on Russian refineries, describing them as legitimate under international law in the context of Ukraine's defence against Russian aggression.

“If we look at international law, it is clear that [hitting refineries] is in defence of Ukraine because that is where the funding comes from for this war to kill Ukrainian people every day,” Kallas told Euronews in an interview.

She argued that oil revenues remain a major source of funding for Russia's war and said Ukraine's attacks on refineries must be viewed alongside Moscow's strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure.

“If we look at the big picture, the majority of the financing for this war comes from oil. And that is why Ukraine is also targeting them [the refineries], while Russia is targeting the energy infrastructure inside Ukraine, to cause as much suffering for the Ukrainian people in the upcoming winter,” she told Euronews.

Kallas stressed that Russia was the aggressor and Ukraine the victim, urging the US to join European countries in increasing pressure on Moscow rather than Kyiv. She also reaffirmed that the European Union would continue supporting Ukraine. 

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