Trump says US will force Zelensky and Putin to make a deal, claims energy truce violated by both sides
Speaking to journalists at Joint Base Andrews before flying to Ohio, US President Donald Trump said Washington will force Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian leader Vladimir Putin to agree on ending the war, and that he believes Putin is more eager for a deal than Zelensky. Asked about the energy ceasefire he had announced on October 11, Trump initially said the US would verify reports of violations and then stated that both sides had broken the truce. Neither Kyiv nor the Kremlin has publicly confirmed that an energy ceasefire agreement actually exists; Ukraine said it learned of the announcement from social media, and Russian attacks on Kharkiv infrastructure and the village of Pisochyn continued after the announcement.
Key points
- Trump said the US would force Zelensky and Putin to conclude a deal to end the war, and that he believes Putin is more interested in a deal than Zelensky.
- Trump initially said the US would verify reports of energy-ceasefire violations, then stated that violations occurred on both sides.
- On October 11 Trump announced an energy ceasefire after a phone call with Putin, but neither Kyiv nor the Kremlin publicly confirmed the agreement; Ukraine said it learned of it from social media.
- Russian strikes after the announcement hit the TEC-5 thermal power plant in Kharkiv and the village of Pisochyn, killing three and injuring more than 20.
- On October 12 Russia struck at least six Ukrainian energy facilities.
- Zelensky called Trump's separate deal with Putin on Russian diesel fuel exports "unfair and dishonest."
- On October 12 EU foreign ministers imposed sanctions on nearly 1,600 new individuals and entities linked to Russia's military-industrial complex, more than half tied to ballistic missile production.
Why it matters
Trump's framing of US policy as forcing both sides to accept a deal marks a shift from mediator to enforcer, and his claim that Putin is keener for a deal than Zelensky diverges from the usual posture that both sides are equally engaged. His acknowledgement that the energy truce was violated "on both sides" departs from earlier framing of Russia as the sole violator, even as Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure continued after his October 11 announcement. The gap between Trump's claim of an agreed truce and the absence of confirmation from either Kyiv or the Kremlin leaves the actual status of the ceasefire unclear.
What happened
On the night of October 12–13, speaking to journalists at Joint Base Andrews before departing for Ohio, US President Donald Trump said Washington would force Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian leader Vladimir Putin to conclude a deal to end the war. Trump said both leaders want a deal but do not know how to get there, and added that, in his view, Putin is more interested in a deal than Zelensky. Asked about reports of violations of the energy ceasefire he had announced on October 11 after a call with Putin, Trump initially said the US would check the information and later stated that violations had occurred on both sides. When asked whether Russia and Ukraine had formally agreed to the truce, Trump replied that they had agreed because he told them to. He also commented on a separate deal with Putin on Russian diesel fuel supplies, saying it was not in his personal interest but "for the rest of the world." Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky had said earlier that Ukraine learned of the energy ceasefire from social media and was ready to halt strikes on Russian energy infrastructure if Russia reciprocated; the Kremlin did not confirm that an agreement existed and said discussions were ongoing. After the October 11 announcement, Russian forces struck the TEC-5 thermal power plant in Kharkiv and the village of Pisochyn in Kharkiv Oblast, where three people were killed and more than 20 were injured, and on October 12 Russia hit at least six Ukrainian energy facilities. Zelensky publicly criticised Trump's deal on Russian diesel exports as "unfair and dishonest." Separately, on October 12 EU foreign ministers imposed sanctions on nearly 1,600 new individuals and entities linked to Russia's military-industrial complex, with more than half tied to ballistic missile production.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
All supplied coverage is from Ukrainian outlets, which frame the story around Trump rather than presenting it as a balanced diplomatic exchange. The reporting foregrounds Ukraine's exclusion from the energy ceasefire announcement and emphasises that Kyiv learned of it from social media rather than through diplomatic channels. Ukrainian outlets highlight Zelensky's characterisation of the Russian diesel deal as "unfair and dishonest," framing it as a betrayal by Washington, and point out the gap between Trump's claim that violations came from both sides and the documented Russian strikes on Kharkiv energy infrastructure and Pisochyn. The EU sanctions package and the continued Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy sites are placed in the same news flow, contrasting European firmness with US ambiguity.
Where reporting differs
Trump initially told journalists he was not sure the truce had been broken and said the US would verify the reports, then said violations had occurred on both sides. Trump maintains that an energy ceasefire agreement exists and that both sides accepted it because he instructed them to; Kyiv says it was not informed in advance and learned of the announcement from social media, and the Kremlin has not confirmed the agreement exists, saying only that discussions are ongoing. Trump also says both Zelensky and Putin support the energy ceasefire, while Kyiv and Moscow publicly stop short of confirming it. On the diesel deal, Trump frames it as "for the rest of the world" and not in his personal interest, while Zelensky calls the unilateral lifting of sanctions on Russian diesel exports "unfair and dishonest."
Background
Trump announced the energy ceasefire on October 11 following a phone call with Putin, in which the two also discussed Russian diesel fuel supplies to world markets. Neither Kyiv nor Moscow publicly confirmed that an energy ceasefire agreement existed; the Kremlin said discussions were ongoing, and Ukraine said it was not pre-informed and learned of the announcement from social media. Zelensky has said Ukraine is ready to halt strikes on Russian energy infrastructure if Russia reciprocates. After Trump's October 11 announcement, Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure continued: the TEC-5 thermal power plant in Kharkiv and the village of Pisochyn in Kharkiv Oblast were hit the same day, killing three and injuring more than 20, and on October 12 Russia struck at least six Ukrainian energy facilities. Zelensky has publicly criticised Trump's decision to lift sanctions and allow Russian diesel exports as "unfair and dishonest." On October 12, EU foreign ministers imposed sanctions on roughly 1,600 new individuals and organisations linked to Russia's military-industrial complex, with more than half connected to ballistic missile production.