First posted on Instagram · @profilopolitics
President Donald Trump turned up the heat on Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday, telling reporters outside the White House that Ukraine needs new leadership. "I suggest they get a new leader who can make a deal," Trump said. "He could have made many deals, and for some reason, he never does. I think it's time for Ukraine to get a new president."
Trump also ordered Zelensky to stop striking Russian oil refineries, saying the attacks were making the world's diesel problem worse. "He better damn well stop," the president said. He added that he had told Zelensky to leave the refineries alone — the strikes hurt American farmers and drive up fuel costs at home.
The clash erupted a day after Trump announced a new energy arrangement with Russian President Vladimir Putin. After a lengthy phone call on Friday, Trump said Russia would "immediately supply over 300,000 tons of diesel fuel to the American and global marketplace," with 500,000 tonnes to follow in November and a million tonnes after that. The move is aimed at bringing diesel prices down for American drivers and farmers, with diesel sitting above six dollars a gallon nationally.
Zelensky blasted the deal, calling it a "weak decision" and "unworthy of our partners." He told Axios the arrangement was neither fair nor honest, warning that every extra billion Russia earns from sanctions relief would be spent on new attacks. The Ukrainian leader has argued that keeping the pressure on Moscow's energy income is what forces Russia to feel the cost of its war.
Overnight, just hours after the diesel deal was announced, Ukrainian drones struck the NZNP oil-loading terminal in Rostov-on-Don, setting off a large fire at the export facility. Rostov Governor Yuriy Slyusar confirmed more than 50 drones were intercepted over the region between Friday evening and Saturday morning. A senior Ukrainian official told the Financial Times that Kyiv will keep hitting Russian energy infrastructure regardless of the agreement.
The White House position is that the strikes are sabotaging a peace push and American relief at the pump. A U.S. official told Axios that Zelensky is misreading the room and eroding the goodwill he built with Trump over the last six months. Trump said his administration had asked Zelensky repeatedly to lay off the refineries: "We told them they can do whatever they want in Russia, but don't hit the refineries."
The rupture comes even as American diplomacy keeps moving. Envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were meeting Ukrainian officials in Miami on Saturday to discuss security guarantees and post-war recovery, while the European Union's foreign chief Kaja Kallas said European ministers would approve a new package of Russia sanctions on Monday.