Details of the Trump-Putin agreement that surprised Zelensky

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US President Donald Trump suddenly announced an agreement between Ukraine and Russia to immediately stop targeting oil refineries in the two countries.

The development came after Trump demanded twenty-four hours earlier for the departure of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and less than 48 hours after he agreed with Russian President Vladimir Putin that Moscow would supply diesel to the American and global markets in exchange for lifting some sanctions on Russia.

Suddenly and without any introduction, Trump wrote in a post on the “Truth Social” platform, on Sunday, that the two sides had reached an agreement, and that “as of now, there is a ceasefire in the war between Russia and Ukraine. Both sides have agreed to this. Do not break it!”

Although Zelensky said he was surprised by the announcement, he expressed his willingness to agree to the American proposal, provided that the truce is mutual and with “real guarantees,” that is, punitive measures against Moscow by Kiev’s allies, including Washington, according to the British newspaper The Guardian.

The Ukrainian president told Axios: “If President Trump has negotiated with Putin, tell us when the ceasefire begins. We are ready and will accept it.”

Zelensky had previously rejected Washington's call on Kiev to stop bombing Russian oil refineries, saying that Moscow must end the attacks on his country's energy infrastructure first. While there were no indications of the Kremlin's commitment to the ceasefire announced by Trump, Zelensky questioned Moscow's intentions, pointing to the continuation of Russian strikes, which he described as "brutal," including several air strikes targeting energy infrastructure.

The Ukrainian president said that the Russians targeted thermal power plant No. 5 in the city of Kharkiv, eastern Ukraine, in the latest attack among more than 200 raids this week that targeted facilities for generating and transmitting electricity in Ukraine. He added that there were 17 other raids targeting gas and oil facilities, according to The Guardian.

Observers believe that the already tense relations between Washington and Kiev became more tense on Friday when Trump announced the lifting of sanctions on Russian diesel exports. He considered that this step would reduce global and local fuel prices before the US Congressional midterm elections next month.

The Guardian described the sharp public dispute as the most serious between the United States and Ukraine since last year, when Trump criticized Zelensky in the Oval Office.

While the Financial Times newspaper quoted unnamed European officials as saying that the United States is threatening to stop the procurement system that supplies Ukraine with weapons, to pressure Kiev to stop its strikes targeting Russian energy infrastructure.

In this context, the New York Times reported that American officials offered the Kremlin attractive economic incentives in exchange for a ceasefire. Reports indicate that these incentives include the release of billions in frozen Russian sovereign assets. The Trump administration also reconsidered a plan to sell parts of the Russian energy company Lukoil.

Ukrainian officials believe that the White House is demanding that Kiev give up its “most effective” weapon, without demanding any concessions from Moscow in return. In recent weeks, Kiev has dealt a heavy blow to the Russian economy, bombing oil complexes, warehouses and data centers.

As for the Russian bombing, it does not stop, and Zelensky said that the air campaign launched by Moscow includes thousands of aerial bombs and drones.

Many doubt the success of the "energy truce" announced by Trump, while others are counting on its success to help calm the turmoil in global energy markets in light of the current conflicts that have seen fuel prices rise to record levels, and they see that such a truce represents a massive diplomatic breakthrough before the onset of winter.