Trump insists Russia-Ukraine energy ceasefire exists despite reported strikes

President Donald Trump insisted on Monday, October 12, 2026, that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to stop attacking each other's energy infrastructure, even as Ukrainian officials reported new Russian strikes and the Kremlin declined to confirm that an agreement was in place.

Trump first announced what he called an immediate energy ceasefire on Sunday in a brief social media post. He provided no terms, timetable or enforcement mechanism. Asked about the issue on Monday, Trump said the two countries had agreed because he told them to agree, according to Al Jazeera's account of his remarks. When confronted with reports of continued attacks, he said he would examine them and added that there had been violations on both sides.

The statements do not establish that a formal ceasefire has been accepted by Moscow and Kyiv. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine learned about Trump's announcement through media reports and was prepared to stop striking Russian energy targets if Russia reciprocated. He said he had not heard Russian approval of the proposal.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said contacts were continuing but did not confirm that Russia had joined a ceasefire, according to Associated Press reporting published by PBS News. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was more dismissive in remarks cited by Al Jazeera, saying Moscow would continue pursuing the objectives of its military campaign and would not grant Zelenskyy a respite.

Zelenskyy said Russian forces struck at least six Ukrainian energy facilities on Monday. The reported targets included a power plant in Kharkiv, a gas production facility and a civilian gas station. He said 33 people were wounded across the country. Those claims came from Ukrainian officials and could not be independently verified from the battlefield in real time.

Associated Press reporting said Russian attacks also hit Kyiv and the Kharkiv region. Two people were injured in daytime strikes on the capital, while a drone attack on the village of Pisochyn killed three people and injured nine, including children, according to Ukrainian regional prosecutors. Ukraine's air force said Russia launched 121 drones overnight and that strikes were recorded at 15 locations.

Russia, for its part, said its air defenses intercepted 151 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions, occupied Crimea and the Black Sea. Ukraine has repeatedly attacked Russian oil refineries and other energy sites during the war. Kyiv says it would suspend those operations under a reciprocal arrangement that also protected Ukraine's power and gas system.

The dispute matters as winter approaches. Russia has repeatedly attacked Ukraine's electricity and heating infrastructure since launching its full-scale invasion in February 2022. Ukraine has described those operations as an attempt to deprive civilians of power, heat and running water. A verified pause covering energy sites could reduce civilian hardship, but the public statements so far show no shared written terms and no clear monitoring process.

Trump made a similar claim on September 14 that the two countries had agreed not to hit each other's energy infrastructure. That proposal did not produce a durable halt. The latest announcement also comes amid broader tension over Trump's decision to ease sanctions temporarily for Russian diesel purchases, a separate policy move criticized by Ukrainian and European officials and a bipartisan group of U.S. senators.

For now, the White House position is that an energy ceasefire exists. Ukraine says it is willing to comply conditionally but reports that Russia is still striking relevant facilities. Moscow has not publicly endorsed the arrangement. Those conflicting positions leave the status of Trump's announced deal uncertain and make events on the ground, rather than the announcement alone, the key test.

Sources and image credit

Reporting: Associated Press update published by PBS News

Earlier reporting: Associated Press report published by PBS News

Additional reporting and Trump's latest remarks: Al Jazeera

Image: Official White House photo by Molly Riley, via Wikimedia Commons (public domain; cropped to 16:9).