The Kyiv Independent Live in London: 
Ukraine 'ready for energy ceasefire,' Zelensky says after meeting Trump at UN
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Key developments:
- Zelensky and Trump met face-to-face for the first time since July on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly on Sept. 22
- The leaders discussed proposals for an energy ceasefire with Moscow, winter support for Ukraine, Patriot licenses, and trilateral talks with Putin.
- Zelensky said Ukraine is ready to halt attacks on Russian energy facilities if Moscow agrees to the same terms.
President Volodymyr Zelensky met his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump in New York on Sept. 22 to discuss ceasefire proposals in Ukraine and a path toward ending Russia's invasion.
The two presidents are among the hundreds of world leaders and diplomats gathering in New York for the U.N. General Assembly, the highest-level forum to discuss global crises and challenges.
Following the meeting, Zelensky said the discussion with Trump focused on proposals for an energy truce, support for Ukraine during winter, and Patriot production licenses for Ukraine. They also discussed prospects for a trilateral meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The meeting, the first between the two leaders since July, comes amid Washington's renewed push to broker an end to the all-out Russia-Ukraine war, now ongoing for more than four and a half years.
These efforts hit a deadlock earlier this year amid Moscow's territorial demands and Washington's shift of focus toward its war with Iran.
Ahead of the meeting, Zelensky emphasized the need for "strong de-escalation steps" to bring the peace closer.
Energy ceasefire
Zelensky told reporters after the meeting with Trump that the leaders discussed a proposed ceasefire on energy infrastructure attacks. Ukraine, for its part, is ready to accept such a deal.
"We don't want to go into details — we are ready for energy ceasefire," Zelensky told reporters after the meeting.
Ukraine supports a total ceasefire on all energy infrastructure, including oil and diesel refineries, Zelensky said, but it will only work if Russia commits to the same truce.
"We are ready for any kind of format of energy ceasefire. ... We are very thankful to American side. They will share it with Russians. I don't know the Russian position," Zelensky said.
Ukraine has not received any "one-sided order" to stop attacks on Russia, and will stop striking Russian oil processing infrastructure only if Moscow does the same, Zelensky said.
Trump can use his tariff authorities under the newly passed Lindsey Graham sanctions bill to pressure Russia into halting its brutal strikes on Ukraine's energy grid in winter, he added.
The meeting came shortly after Trump signed a major sanctions bill granting him authority to impose a 100% tariff on the top five buyers of Russian oil and gas, and after the U.S. State Department greenlit a possible $2.7 billion sale of air defenses to Ukraine.
In his address to the U.N. General Assembly earlier on Sept. 22, Trump vowed to deploy his new tariff authorities "if necessary" to bring the war to an end.
"President Trump has this tool," Zelensky said after the meeting. "I was grateful to him today, both in public and outside the media, for this tool. We are very hopeful that if Putin shows any escalation, that this tool will be used. This is a strong thing."
Zelensky also said he and Trump discussed support for Ukraine during the winter months — perhaps indicating that Russia is more likely to continue pounding Kyiv's power grid in the cold season rather than accept a ceasefire on energy attacks.
"If it will be winter in war, it will be not simple," the president said.
Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump's special envoys leading the talks with Ukraine and Russia, are also expected to meet late on Sept. 22 with the Ukrainian negotiating team and representatives from the U.K., France, and Germany to discuss Kyiv's de-escalation proposals, Axios reported.
While no concrete proposals were announced at the joint press briefing ahead of the leaders' conversation, Trump told reporters "the relationship (between the U.S. and Ukraine) is very strong" and he believes a deal is possible.
"I think we're gonna make a deal, and I don't want to say what the deal is," he said.
Trump also characterized Ukraine's deep strike campaign against Russian oil refineries as "a serious hit against the Russians."
"It's also a serious hit on the price of diesel," he claimed. "Diesel fuel has gone up quite a bit. ... We'll be talking about that."
Trump said the U.S. was considering its own short-term ban on diesel exports amid the shortage, which has been in large part driven by the war against Iran.
The U.S. president has previously linked Ukrainian strikes against Russian refineries to the surging global diesel prices — a claim disputed by experts — and asked Ukraine to cease its attacks against Russian diesel infrastructure.
The day before his meeting with Zelensky, Trump commented on Sept. 21 that the war has inflicted heavy damage to the Russian oil refining industry and urged an end to the fighting.
Patriot licenses
Zelensky and Trump also discussed the topic of Patriot production licenses for Ukraine — something the White House has previously promised, but then backed away from.
According to Zelensky, Ukraine's most urgent need ahead of the looming winter is an adequate supply of air defense munitions, especially U.S.-made Patriot interceptors. However, he said the licensing deal with the U.S. would not provide short-term relief, but support Ukraine's future.
A licensing agreement is "not for today," Zelensky said. "It's for the future. ... we need licenses and we need security guarantees for Ukraine and security shield for Ukraine."
According to Zelensky, the U.S. defense manufacturer Raytheon is "ready" to supply the licenses, and Kyiv is lobbying the Trump administration to speed up the process.
Regarding U.S. supplies of Patriot interceptors for the upcoming winter, Zelensky said it was a positive sign that he hadn't been told no — but clarified he hadn't received any concrete promises of deliveries, either.
In remarks ahead of the private meeting with Zelensky, Trump himself made no promises regarding the production of Patriot missiles in Ukraine.
Trilateral peace talks
According to Zelensky, "the most important thing" Trump can do to help bring about a peace deal is persuade Putin to join in-person trilateral talks at the G20 summit in Miami.
Putin's participation in such talks would send a signal that Russia is at last ready to make serious steps towards peace, he said.
"I'm ready (to sit down with Putin) any time ... I think that we all need to move as quick as possible," Zelensky said.
Putin has consistently refused invitations to meet with Zelensky in a neutral country, responding to such overtures with a counter-invitation to host the Ukrainian president in Moscow. The Kremlin has also stalled negotiations by arguing that Zelensky lacks "legitimacy."
Meanwhile, Russia continues to obstruct the peace process by clinging to maximalist demands and claiming that the so-called "root causes" of the full-scale war must be addressed before a ceasefire can take effect.
Zelensky dismissed the Kremlin's constant appeals to "root causes," urging good-faith negotiations.
" It's bullshit, really," Zelensky said. "If you want to end the war between us, you don't begin any war. ... You want to end the war? Sit. Speak. End."
