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Trump’s Russia-Ukraine energy ceasefire claim is news to Kyiv

• 2 min read
Trump’s Russia-Ukraine energy ceasefire claim is news to Kyiv
U.S. President Donald Trump in the White House briefing room on, April 6, 2026. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Editor's note: This story is being updated with additional details.

Ukraine had no information about an energy ceasefire that U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Oct. 11, a senior Ukrainian official told the Kyiv Independent.

Trump announced the ceasefire in a post on Truth Social, writing that "Effective immediately, there is an ENERGY CEASEFIRE in the War between Russia and Ukraine. Both parties have agreed."

In a short interview after Trump's announcement, President Volodymyr Zelensky told Axios, "If President Trump negotiated it with (Vladimir) Putin, please tell us when the ceasefire begins. We are ready, and we will accept it."

The Ukrainian official also expressed doubt that Russia had been informed of the ceasefire.

Trump's announcement comes less than an hour after Zelensky was interviewed by ABC News, in which he said if Trump can arrange a two-month ceasefire with Putin, he can prepare Ukraine to hold a new presidential election.

Ukraine introduced martial law when Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, but elections cannot be held when martial law is in effect.

Trump and his allies have said Ukraine should elect a different president, and have accused Zelensky of prolonging the war.

But over that same time, Russia has continued to attack civilian targets across Ukraine, including Kyiv's energy infrastructure.

This is not the first time Trump has announced a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia, but a tangible agreement has remained out of reach so far.

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Tim Zadorozhnyy

Reporter

Tim Zadorozhnyy is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent covering foreign policy, U.S.-Ukraine relations, and political developments across Europe and Russia. He studied International Relations and European Studies at Lazarski University and Coventry University. Tim began his journalism career in Odesa in 2022 as a reporter for a local television channel. He later spent a year and a half at the Belarusian independent media outlet NEXTA, first as a news anchor and later as a managing editor. He is fluent in English, Ukrainian, and Russian.

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