President Trump on Sunday called on President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine to end strikes on Russian oil refineries, blaming the attacks for a global diesel shortage.
“Mr. Zelensky has to do one thing: He has to stop knocking out diesel fuel in Russia,” Mr. Trump told reporters from the sidelines of the Amgen Irish Open, which was held at his golf course in Doonbeg, Ireland, over the weekend.
“Let him go after targets — but not diesel fuel, because he’s causing a shortage of diesel,” Mr. Trump said, adding that he had spoken with Mr. Zelensky about the strikes. “Don’t hit diesel fuel because that’s hurting the world,” he said he told Mr. Zelensky.
Diesel supplies have been hit particularly hard in recent months. The average price of a gallon of diesel fuel in the United States continued to set records. It climbed to $6.20 on Sunday, according to the AAA motor club, up nearly 65 percent since the United States and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28. The national average price for a gallon of regular gas, $4.31 on Sunday, has also risen sharply since the start of the Iran war, by about 45 percent.
Concern over diminishing energy supplies grew over the weekend after a critical oil pipeline in Saudi Arabia was shut down on Friday, following a drone attack launched from Iraqi territory. The news briefly pushed the price of oil to $110 a barrel on Friday over heightened fears of widening clashes in the Middle East, before easing to about $105 a barrel.
Mr. Trump’s remarks echoed similar comments this month by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who cited Ukraine’s attacks on Russia’s oil infrastructure as part of the reason for rising energy prices.
“We are going through an energy shock right now due to both the war in Ukraine — because Ukraine has decided that they want to blow up Russian energy assets and refine products, so that is creating upward price pressure on a global basis,” Mr. Bessent said on Fox News. “And then the conflict in Iran. And the conflict in Iran will end.”
Mr. Trump’s comment came hours after Ukrainian forces confirmed attacks on oil refineries in Russian territory, officials said.
Analysts point to both the conflict in the Middle East and the Russia-Ukraine war as key factors that are stretching the global oil refining system to its limit. The need for progress in resolving both “is greater than ever to avoid further market tightening and demand destruction,” the International Energy Agency wrote in a report published on Friday.
The post Trump Blames Ukraine for Global Diesel Shortage appeared first on New York Times.
