Zelenskyy Says Ukraine Ready for Energy Ceasefire After Trump UN Talks

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv is ready for a bilateral “energy ceasefire” with Russia after a 40-minute meeting with US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, according to Al Jazeera. Zelenskyy told reporters that Ukraine would halt strikes on Russian diesel and refinery targets if Moscow stopped attacking Ukraine’s electricity, heating and water systems — a conditional truce aimed at protecting civilian infrastructure ahead of winter.

Writing on X after the encounter, Zelenskyy called the talks “positive and productive,” saying both Washington and Kyiv want Russia’s full-scale war ended before winter and that they discussed “potential de-escalatory steps that can open up the way to diplomacy,” Al Jazeera reported. He also said there had been no discussion with Trump of Ukraine unilaterally ending attacks on the Russian oil industry. Trump, facing pressure from high petrol prices ahead of November midterms, had told reporters before the meeting that Ukrainian strikes on oil facilities were hitting both Russian capacity and global diesel prices.

The Guardian reported the same opening on day 1,673 of the wider conflict, quoting Zelenskyy as saying, “We are ready for any kind of format of energy ceasefire” if Russia agrees not to attack Ukraine’s energy system. The Ukrainian leader also said he was prepared for a trilateral meeting with Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, and expressed hope that “the American side will find a way … to bring them to any kind of negotiations.” Trump, in his UN speech, insisted a settlement could come “more quickly than people understand,” even as diplomatic efforts have stalled amid Washington’s parallel focus on the war with Iran.

The energy-truce pitch sits against an intensifying long-range campaign on both sides. Al Jazeera noted that Russia has repeatedly targeted Ukrainian power, fuel and port infrastructure, including a September 15 wave of about 200 drones that hit petrol stations in Kyiv and energy sites elsewhere. Ukraine has expanded drone strikes on Russian refineries and energy facilities as far as 3,000 kilometres from the border; a September 20 attack forced the Moscow oil refinery — which processed about 230,000 barrels a day in 2024 — to halt crude processing, according to industry sources cited by Reuters and carried by Al Jazeera. Trump claimed last week that both countries had agreed to stop attacking each other’s energy facilities, but strikes resumed almost immediately.

Air defence remained a parallel ask. Zelenskyy said he discussed a winter Patriot package with Trump and proposed swapping future German interceptor deliveries — Berlin has agreed to provide 600 Patriots in 2027 and 2028 — for nearer-term US stockpile support, The Guardian and Al Jazeera both reported. He said the idea was not rejected but that Trump had not yet agreed. Global Patriot inventories have been strained by conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, leaving Ukrainian cities more exposed to ballistic missiles as temperatures fall.

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who also met Zelenskyy in New York, told reporters he lobbied Trump to press for a Ukraine–Russia energy ceasefire and promised further financial support for Ukrainian infrastructure, according to both outlets. Zelenskyy, writing on Telegram after that meeting, said there could be no discussion of easing sanctions on Russia “when Ukrainians live every day under the threat of missile and drone attacks,” and warned of intelligence that Moscow was preparing a new massive strike. For markets and allies watching UN week, the signal is a conditional energy pause without a signed text: Kyiv says yes if Moscow mirrors it, Washington talks up speed, and winter infrastructure risk remains the clock that all three capitals are racing.