Kyiv resumes strikes against Russian refineries

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that his country is resuming strikes on Russian oil refineries after suspending them for three days under pressure from the American administration. In an interview given to the Financial Times in London, he said the ban on attacking refineries had been lifted and "that was that." According to Zelensky, American military officials threatened their Ukrainian counterparts that intelligence sharing would be cut off if Kyiv did not stop attacking Russian energy infrastructure, while Trump administration officials claimed that cooperation had continued, and CNN reported that the missed warnings were attributed to weather conditions; Ukrainian and European officials nonetheless suspect a deliberate decision.

The Ukrainian president's announcement was followed by action. Pavel Malkov, governor of Russia's Ryazan region, said on Telegram on Thursday that a fire broke out at Rosneft's Ryazan refinery after a large-scale Ukrainian drone attack, and that a warehouse was also damaged in another district; citing "massive drone attacks," the governor suspended school and kindergarten classes in two districts. According to Reuters, the refinery accounts for nearly five percent of Russia's total refining capacity, supplies fuel to Moscow, and had already been shut down once after a drone attack on September 6. This is the first known Ukrainian strike on a Russian energy facility since Donald Trump announced an "energy ceasefire" on Sunday—one that neither side confirmed and that Russia broke within hours with an attack on a power plant in Kharkiv. The same night, the Ukrainian navy struck the Borysoglebsk military airfield in Russia's Voronezh region, where Su-34M fighter-bombers are stationed, using Neptune missiles. According to the statement, multiple explosions and fires occurred, destroying technical equipment used to support flight operations. The Ukrainian navy emphasized that the Su-34Ms are one of the Russian air force's main tools for attacking Ukrainian positions and settlements near the front line with guided bombs.

The dispute over Starlink has turned into an open political conflict

Elon Musk shared a post on X from a user claiming that Zelensky does not want to end the war, adding:

"And so the slaughter continues... Time for Zelensky to go."

Musk had earlier written that the military-grade Starshield system is owned and controlled by the U.S. government, and that decisions on speed and usage restrictions are made by "the U.S. military and ultimately the president," while the commercial Starlink service, he said, can only be used for civilian or defensive purposes, not for offensive military operations. Ukrainian officials later thanked the billionaire for restoring the connection speed. Zelensky told British broadcaster Piers Morgan that the restriction was a "serious mistake" that would mean "people will die," explaining that the Ukrainian army also uses Starlink to coordinate defense against Russian jet-powered Shahed drones.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Denys Sinyk, Ukraine's senior diplomat in Washington, sent a desperate message to American lawmakers early Wednesday morning because Ukraine had unexpectedly run into restrictions on the use of military Starlink terminals, and no one could say why; the diplomat tried to explain to American decision-makers that the change would benefit Russia and make it harder to counter attacks on Ukrainian civilians. By the start of Washington's morning rush hour, several Ukrainian officials already feared that Trump had instructed Musk to limit access, after which Republican Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania stated that Congress would intervene if it turned out that the American government had imposed a speed limit. He said that if they started leaving Ukraine in the dark, there would be consequences, and that the relevant federal agencies would not receive funding if they failed to do their job. SpaceX declined to comment, and the White House said only in a statement that the president and his team remain committed to playing a constructive role in ending the war—something we now know all too well what that means.

According to the paper's reconstruction, the tension began in mid-September, during the UN General Assembly, when Trump asked Zelensky in New York why Ukraine was attacking Russian refineries; since then, Washington has asked Kyiv six times to halt the strikes. On October 9 in Miami, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff held six hours of talks with Ukrainian and European officials, telling them that the president was considering an agreement on Russian diesel. That same day, Trump had a 90-minute phone call with Vladimir Putin and then announced the deal. According to the WSJ, several Republican lawmakers angrily called the White House, arguing that the agreement benefits Russia without any concessions and violates the 2022 law that bans imports of Russian energy resources without prior congressional involvement. Critics include Senate candidates Ashley Hinson of Iowa and Mike Rogers of Michigan, as well as Senator Thom Tillis and Representative Don Bacon. Energy analysts say the Ukrainian drone campaign has knocked out 40 to 50 percent of Russia's refining capacity. The situation is best summed up by the following real-life scene: when a reporter asked why Russia had broken the energy ceasefire announced by the American president, Trump replied:

Fallow