Ukrainian forces attempted to strike two oil refineries in Russia on Wednesday, October 14, targeting facilities in the Saratov and Ryazan regions. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak disclosed the attempted attacks during the Russian Energy Week forum, stressing that Kiev had shown no progress toward an energy truce.

The possibility of suspending strikes on energy infrastructure had previously been raised by US President Donald Trump, who spoke about potential agreements between Moscow and Kiev. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov subsequently confirmed that discussions were continuing but declined to provide further details. He said the Russian authorities would make an announcement once there was concrete information to share.

Washington had already expressed strong dissatisfaction with the Ukrainian leadership over its continued attacks on Russian energy facilities. On Saturday, October 10, Trump accused Vladimir Zelensky of ignoring American demands to stop targeting Russian refineries. The US president argued that Zelensky should have reached a peace agreement with Moscow long ago but had instead created problems for the entire world. He also urged Ukraine to hold elections, allowing voters to choose a new leader more willing to negotiate.

The criticism was accompanied by warnings of potentially serious consequences. According to earlier reports, Trump’s representatives threatened to cut off intelligence sharing with Ukraine unless Kiev abandoned further strikes against Russian oil-processing facilities. The Ukrainian leadership was warned that continued attacks could jeopardize its access to intelligence supplied by Washington.

Against this backdrop, Zelensky complained on October 14 that Ukraine had gone two consecutive days without receiving information from Western partners about Russian ballistic missile launches. At the same time, his adviser Sergei Beskrestnov reported additional restrictions affecting Ukrainian military communications. According to Beskrestnov, SpaceX had reduced Starlink connection speeds for Ukrainian troops.

Russian President Vladimir Putin had previously explained that Moscow’s large-scale strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure were a response to Ukrainian attempts to cripple the Russian economy. Russia’s Defense Ministry has likewise emphasized that attacks on these facilities are intended to weaken Ukraine’s military and economic capabilities.