From US threats to end intelligence support for Ukraine to a possible diesel deal that could help Moscow finance the war, relations between Kyiv and Washington deteriorated sharply over the past week.

US President Donald Trump repeatedly criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky over high energy prices. Trump has attributed part of the increase to Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries. Meanwhile, the interruption of US-provided satellite internet services raised concerns that Ukraine could become vulnerable as it prepares for another winter of Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure.

Zelensky responded with an unusually harsh series of public criticisms of Trump and suggested that the United States was now supporting Russia. The Ukrainian president said Kyiv would not comply with Trump’s demand to stop strikes on Russian energy facilities, citing Moscow’s continuing attacks against Ukraine.

The deepening dispute has raised concerns about potentially more serious consequences for Kyiv. Trump could restrict weapons deliveries, carry out threats to stop sharing battlefield intelligence, or conclude further economic agreements with Russia.

Despite his public statements, Zelensky wants dialogue with Trump’s representatives to continue. Two Ukrainian officials familiar with the negotiations said Kyiv wanted to keep working with envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the US president’s son-in-law. The officials requested anonymity.

Denys Sienik, Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires in Washington, told Newsmax television on Friday that Ukraine was grateful to Trump and his team for their efforts “to end the war.” He added that Kyiv was ready to begin negotiations with Russia.

Trump told reporters on Friday that he would continue working with both Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin. “I want this war to end,” the US president said.

Daniel Fried, who served as the State Department’s senior official for Europe from 2005 to 2009, said it was unclear whether Washington was making a lasting turn away from Ukraine. He said, however, that the consequences of the current approach were harming prospects for ending the war that began with Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

“This is not just a missed opportunity; it is causing real suffering in Ukraine and encouraging Putin to continue the war, so it is not without consequences,” said Fried, who now works at the Atlantic Council think tank in Washington.

Relations between Trump and Zelensky have long been difficult. Trump and Vice President JD Vance publicly criticized the Ukrainian president during a meeting in the Oval Office in February last year. Under Trump, Washington suspended or delayed military aid to Ukraine while allowing European allies to purchase US weapons for Kyiv.

Relations had stabilized, but Ukrainian strikes on Russian energy facilities this year began affecting fuel prices. Analysts say high gasoline and diesel prices are a political problem for Trump ahead of November’s midterm elections, when his Republican Party could lose its majority in Congress.

Experts say the surge in energy prices is mainly linked to the US-Israeli war against Iran. The conflict led to Iranian attacks on energy facilities and largely blocked the vital Strait of Hormuz.

Unhappy with Zelensky, Trump turned to Russia in an effort to increase fuel supplies and limit prices, a US official familiar with the matter said, requesting anonymity. On October 9, Trump said he had reached an agreement with Putin to temporarily lift sanctions on Russian fuels and allow imports of Russian diesel.

For Kyiv, the stakes are immediate. Zelensky said on Tuesday that Ukraine had received no warning from its Western partners before a deadly Russian attack on the capital.

Without US intelligence, Ukraine could face greater difficulty detecting and countering Russian missile and drone attacks, particularly against energy infrastructure that Moscow has repeatedly targeted during previous winters.

Trump said the United States was still sharing intelligence with Ukraine. Zelensky told NPR, however, that American officials had warned Ukrainian commanders that the intelligence could be reduced or cut off entirely.

Ukraine’s Starshield military system, based on SpaceX’s Starlink service, was interrupted following an order from the White House, two US officials and one Western official familiar with the matter said. The service was later partially restored.

The episode highlighted Ukraine’s vulnerability because of its reliance on technologies controlled by American companies and subject to decisions by the Trump administration. That dependence gives Trump a potential lever as he pressures Kyiv to begin talks with Moscow.

Trump could face resistance if Republicans in Congress conclude that his approach is weakening Ukraine and benefiting Russia. Ukraine continues to have support among Trump’s fellow Republicans, some of whom argue that Washington should not pressure Kyiv to accept a peace agreement on terms favorable to Moscow.

Brett Bruen, a former foreign-policy adviser in Barack Obama’s administration and head of the consulting firm Global Situation Room, described Zelensky’s tough response as risky. He said the Ukrainian president may be counting on a change in the balance of power on Capitol Hill after the midterm elections. Such a shift could make it harder for Trump to ease sanctions on Russia and further reduce military assistance to Kyiv.

“Zelensky knows who he is dealing with,” Bruen said. In his view, Trump’s threats no longer have the same effect as when JD Vance tried to shame the Ukrainian president in the Oval Office.

Source: bta.bg/bg