President Donald Trump said on Sunday, October 11, 2026, that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to an "energy ceasefire" in the war, which is now in its fifth year. Ukrainian officials reported that Russia struck energy sites in the eastern city of Kharkiv and in Kyiv after the announcement. Moscow had not publicly commented or confirmed any agreement.
Trump's post on Truth Social read: "Effective immediately, there is an ENERGY CEASEFIRE in the War between Russia and Ukraine. Both parties have agreed. Do not break it!" The post gave no terms, no start time and no duration, according to RedState and the New York Post.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the announcement was "news to me." He told Axios that if Russia agrees to an energy ceasefire, Ukraine will too, and he asked to be told when it begins. A senior source in the presidential office told ABC News that Zelenskyy learned of it from social media. In his evening address, Zelenskyy called it good news but said Russian drones, glide bombs and strikes on energy infrastructure continued. A local official told ABC News that the CHP-5 thermal plant in Kharkiv was hit at least twice, causing a fire. The presidential office said that attack came after Trump's post, and Zelenskyy said a plant in Kyiv was also hit. Drone strikes also caused widespread power cuts in Kyiv. One article dated the Russian glide bomb attacks to October 12 and said they killed at least 21 people across Ukraine, including three children in Zaporizhzhia and an 11-year-old boy in the Dnipropetrovsk region.
Earlier Sunday, Zelenskyy told ABC's "This Week" that Ukraine would stop striking Russian refineries if Moscow halted attacks on Ukraine's power infrastructure, and he asked Trump to press the Kremlin. Russia has targeted Ukraine's grid to deny civilians power, heat and water, which Ukrainian officials call "weaponising winter." Ukraine calls its refinery attacks "long-range sanctions."
The announcement followed a tense week. On Friday, after a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump said the U.S. would buy Russian diesel: 300,000 tons immediately, 500,000 tons in November and 1,000,000 tons afterward. The Treasury Department authorized temporary sanctions relief, which another report said would let Moscow release over 300,000 tons of fuel onto global markets. Zelenskyy called the move a "betrayal," and some Republicans criticized it. Trump said the Ukrainian refinery strikes were worsening global diesel shortages linked to the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran. The U.S. national average for diesel is $6.28 a gallon, according to AAA, as cited by the New York Post, and the administration blames the strikes for part of the rise.
On Saturday, October 10, Trump said Ukraine should "get a new leader who can make a deal," and said: "Russia would like to make a deal… but for whatever reason, Zelenskyy does not want to make a deal." He criticized Ukraine for not holding elections since the full-scale invasion in February 2022. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov agreed that Zelenskyy lacks the political will to end the conflict, according to RT International. Zelenskyy said Ukrainians have the right to choose their leaders and that elections could be held after a 60-day total ceasefire. Ukraine has been under martial law since 2022, and its constitution bars elections while it is in force. Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said Zelenskyy has the Ukrainian people's support. British Prime Minister Andy Burnham pledged to strengthen British sanctions on Moscow, and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned that easing pressure would help sustain Russia's war effort.
A senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute told ABC Australia that elections remain unlikely soon, saying "it is hard to imagine that Russia would accept" a 60-day ceasefire, citing Russia's record of violating similar agreements. She also noted logistical challenges, such as enabling Ukrainians who fled abroad to vote. Fox News and RedState note that Trump announced a similar energy ceasefire in September, when Moscow did not confirm it and attacks continued. A four-day energy pause did run from January 29 through February 1, according to RedState.
