Zelensky Talks to Witkoff and Kushner as Trump Attacks Him Over Strikes on Russian Energy Sites

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke Sunday, Oct. 18, with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Trump's envoys, as the public rift between Kyiv and Washington widened.

Zelensky said the call covered the results of a recent meeting between Ukrainian and U.S. negotiating teams in Florida. "Our teams are in constant communication. We are also preparing the next steps in diplomacy," he wrote on Facebook.

He added that Ukraine keeps telling its partners about Russian shelling and air defense needs. "A great deal depends on America's position here," Zelensky said.

Trump's Sunday post

The call came the same day Trump went after Zelensky on Truth Social. Trump wrote that he does not want to do anything that would drive Russia away from negotiations, and that he believes "great progress is being made."

He also wrote that Zelensky "doesn't want to end this war, and probably never did."

Last week Trump called Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries a "disgrace." He also said Russia and Ukraine had agreed to stop hitting each other's energy infrastructure. Neither Kyiv nor Moscow acknowledged any such agreement, according to CNN's reporting.

Ukraine paused those strikes briefly, then resumed. Russia never stopped hitting Ukrainian power plants and cities.

The overnight strike on St. Petersburg

Ukraine answered Trump's demand with one of its largest drone attacks of the year. Russia's Defense Ministry said it shot down 1,015 Ukrainian drones overnight into Sunday across the country.

One target was the St. Petersburg Oil Terminal, which Russian authorities say can handle up to 12.5 million tons a year. Fire Point, the Ukrainian company that makes the drones used in the strike, said a fire broke out on the terminal grounds.

A logistics center operated by the Russian distributor Ozon and a data center for the VKontakte social network were also hit, according to the companies and Russian reports. Local authorities said one person was killed and five wounded, and that homes were damaged.

AFP described it as the largest Ukrainian drone attack on St. Petersburg since the full-scale invasion began in 2022. AFP also reported that Russian strikes left thousands without power.

What Kyiv fears

Zelensky told NBC's "Meet the Press" that the U.S. siding with Russia would be a "historic mistake."

AFP reported that Trump has blocked new sanctions on Russia and struck a diesel deal with Moscow. That has fueled fears in Kyiv and across Europe that the White House is tilting toward Russia. Neither the White House nor Moscow was quoted in those accounts on the terms of the diesel arrangement.

CNN reported that Washington is trying to ease pressure on oil and diesel prices ahead of the midterm elections. Trump's own stated reason is different: he says he does not want to push Russia away from the table.

The two positions are now openly at odds. Trump says Ukraine's refinery and terminal strikes jeopardize negotiations he considers productive. Zelensky says Russian bombardment "does not stop for a single minute" and that Ukraine cannot be asked to stop alone.

Zelensky's framing of the call was conciliatory. "Peace comes only through strength and cooperation built on trust," he wrote. He said everyone wants peace after more than four and a half years of war "except Russia."

The next meeting

In an interview with Bloomberg, Zelensky said he was working with Witkoff and Kushner to arrange a meeting as early as this week focused on ending the war. He said he planned to use a video call with the two envoys to settle a date and location.

Ukraine has said it is ready to meet American partners in the coming days, and the proposal has been passed to both envoys, according to Zelensky.

"Ukraine remains ready to work constructively, honestly, and toward a real result," he said Sunday.

No date, venue or agenda has been announced. Whether the next round happens this week, and whether Trump's demand that Kyiv stop hitting Russian energy sites is part of it, are the open questions.

An economic-pressure policy and a peace process are running side by side. Trump wants lower fuel prices and Russia at the table. Ukraine is hitting the infrastructure that pays for Russia's war. Both cannot be fully satisfied at once, and the envoys' next meeting is where that gets tested.