Zelenskiy, Trump Discuss Energy Ceasefire and Path to Ending War at UN
Zelenskiy and Trump met for 40 minutes at the UN, discussing an energy ceasefire, a possible trilateral meeting with Putin, and Patriot air-defence supplies.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he discussed efforts to end the war with Russia, including a possible bilateral ceasefire on energy targets, during a 40-minute meeting with US President Donald Trump at UN headquarters in New York.
Speaking to reporters after the talks, Zelenskiy said Kyiv was prepared to accept an energy ceasefire in any format with Moscow. He added that there had been no discussion of Ukraine unilaterally halting its strikes on Russian oil refineries.
Trump had raised concerns in recent days about the extensive damage to Russia's fuel-processing capacity, which he said was pushing up diesel prices globally. Before the meeting, he told reporters that Ukrainian attacks on oil refineries amounted to a serious hit on Russia but also on the price of diesel, and that the two leaders would discuss both the strikes and ways to end the war.
Zelenskiy reiterated his readiness to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in a trilateral format alongside Trump, saying his willingness to do so showed he was prepared to end the war. He hoped Washington would find a way to bring Moscow back to the negotiating table after talks collapsed earlier this year, though he said he had seen no sign that Putin was ready to talk.
The US president had announced last week that Ukraine and Russia had agreed not to strike energy targets, but the understanding quickly unravelled when Russia hit petrol stations in Kyiv the next day and Ukraine bombed a Russian oil refinery.
Zelenskiy also met UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who said he had urged Trump to press for a Ukraine-Russia energy ceasefire during the meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart. Burnham pledged further financial support for Kyiv's infrastructure.
With aerial attacks intensifying on both sides in recent weeks, damaging ports, warehouses, ships and energy infrastructure and disrupting Black Sea grain exports, Zelenskiy said he had discussed winter preparations with Trump and requested a package of Patriot air-defence missiles — the only system in Ukraine's arsenal capable of intercepting Russian ballistic missiles.
Global supplies of Patriots, including US inventories, have been depleted by the war in Iran and the Ukraine conflict. Zelenskiy proposed that Ukraine receive Patriots from US stockpiles this winter in exchange for future interceptor supplies from its deal with Germany, which has agreed to provide 600 Patriots in 2027 and 2028. He described the fact that the idea was not rejected as a good step, while acknowledging that Trump had not yet agreed to the proposal.
Discussions on licensed Patriot production in Ukraine are continuing, Zelenskiy said, adding that a member of his team had held a positive meeting with Raytheon, a US manufacturer of the system.