Ukraine denies attacking Russian refineries after Trump’s ‘energy truce’

Earlier, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak claimed drones attacked two oil refineries on Wednesday, in Saratov and Ryazan oblasts. Novak blamed Kyiv, citing information from Russia’s Energy Ministry and oil companies.

Andriy Kovalenko, the former head of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation, said Russia was deliberately amplifying reports of attacks on its refineries. He said Russian officials would “actively lie” because they were highly interested in persuading the United States to cut off Ukraine’s access to intelligence.

Kovalenko also said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov had effectively acknowledged that Russia was attacking Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and violating the so-called energy truce by arguing that U.S. President Donald Trump had not specified its terms.

“This is Russia’s traditional game: It does not want peace, so it lies and shifts responsibility while distorting reality,” Kovalenko wrote in a Telegram post.

Trump announced the so-called energy truce on Oct. 11 after reaching an agreement with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin on the supply of Russian diesel to the United States. The truce calls for an end to strikes on oil refineries, even though Ukraine has only one refinery while Russia has an extensive network.

Washington has warned Kyiv that it could suspend intelligence sharing and the purchase of U.S. weapons for Ukraine if attacks on energy infrastructure deep inside Russia do not stop.