Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Kyiv is prepared to observe an energy ceasefire with Russia, but stressed that Moscow has not yet made a reciprocal commitment. In an interview with CBS, Zelenskyy revealed that US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner raised the idea during a recent visit to Kyiv, and that Ukraine agreed on the condition that Russia also ceases all strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure.
“We never attack first. Our tactic is to respond where we can because Putin doesn’t respect and won’t even think of negotiating with weaklings,” Zelenskyy said. He added that the proposal, as presented by the US envoys, focused on refineries and other energy facilities, but that Ukraine’s understanding of an energy ceasefire is broader.
“When Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were here, they proposed thinking about refineries and other energy. I told them we are ready for an energy ceasefire, but you need to know what that means for Ukraine,” he said.
Different meanings of energy
Zelenskyy underscored the asymmetry in how the two sides view energy infrastructure. For Russia, energy primarily means oil and gas exports that fund its war machine; for Ukraine, it means the electricity and gas supplies that keep its cities running and its people warm.
“For Putin, energy is selling oil and gas. For us, energy is having electricity and gas supplies for our people,” he said. “My message was, if the Russians are ready for an energy ceasefire, it means no strikes of any kind with any type of weapon on energy.”
The Ukrainian leader’s comments come after US President Donald Trump claimed that Moscow and Kyiv had agreed not to target each other’s energy infrastructure. No formal deal has been confirmed, and strikes have continued. A recent Russian drone attack on a civilian bus in southern Ukraine killed five people, underscoring the fragility of any such arrangement.
Kremlin-affiliated media have presented the purported truce as a one-way measure, suggesting that Ukraine would halt its long-range strikes while making no mention of Russia ending its attacks on Ukrainian power grids and gas facilities. The Kremlin has called the proposal a “very good idea” but has linked it to broader issues, including safe commercial shipping for oil tankers and the lifting of Western sanctions.
Ukraine has increasingly targeted Russian refineries and oil depots, arguing that these strikes reduce Moscow’s ability to finance its full-scale invasion. The strategy has drawn criticism from some Western officials concerned about global energy prices, but Kyiv insists it is a legitimate response to Russia’s systematic destruction of Ukrainian civilian infrastructure.
Zelenskyy’s remarks highlight the deep mistrust that persists between the two sides. Even if an energy ceasefire were agreed, verifying compliance would be difficult, and the experience of previous agreements—such as the Black Sea grain deal—has shown that Russia often attaches conditions or withdraws unilaterally.
The proposal also comes at a time when European leaders are watching the war’s trajectory closely. Romania’s president has warned that the conflict could last another two years, and the EU’s focus on defence and Ukraine was a central theme in Ursula von der Leyen’s State of the Union address. Any pause in energy strikes would have immediate implications for European energy markets and for the humanitarian situation in Ukraine.
For now, Kyiv’s position is clear: it will not agree to a unilateral halt. As Zelenskyy put it, “We never attack first,” but Ukraine will continue to respond to Russian aggression until Moscow shows a genuine willingness to negotiate on equal terms.
