WASHINGTON, UNITED STATES
\nUS President Donald Trump sowed confusion on Sunday, announcing an \u201cenergy ceasefire\u201d between Ukraine and Russia that sparked astonishment in Kyiv, silence from Moscow and support from Ukraine\u2019s Western allies.
\nBut the ceasefire appeared shaky at best as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia struck multiple Ukrainian power plants on Sunday, including one in the capital and another in Kharkiv, leading to power outages and outrage. Trump\u2019s announcement came two days after he declared a temporary easing of US sanctions on Russian diesel, prompting outrage by European allies and Kyiv, who said it would only embolden Russian President Vladimir Putin.
\n\u201cEffective immediately, there is an ENERGY CEASEFIRE in the War between Russia and Ukraine,\u201d Trump said early Sunday on Truth Social. \u201cBoth parties have agreed. Do not break it!\u201c Zelensky appeared to express surprise at the announcement, saying he was seeking further details, but added that \u201cUkraine supports the ceasefire, and it is important that Russia support it as well.\u201d
\nRussia has yet to confirm its agreement. Zelensky later said that multiple Ukrainian power stations had been hit and that \u201cUkrainian skies have been infested with Russian \u2018shaheds\u2019 all day,\u201d referring to a type of drone originally designed by Iran that is now used extensively by Russia.
\nSince launching a full-scale invasion of its neighbor in 2022, Russia has systematically hit Ukrainian energy infrastructure, leading to energy and heating shortages \u2014 prompting Ukraine to hit back at Russian oil refineries it says fund the war.
\nMore recently, Trump\u2019s war in Iran has led to oil shortages and ensuing price spikes, creating major headwinds for his Republican Party ahead of midterm elections early next month.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON, UNITED STATES US President Donald Trump sowed confusion on Sunday, announcing an \u201cenergy ceasefire\u201d between Ukraine and Russia that sparked astonishment in Kyiv, silence from Moscow and support from Ukraine\u2019s Western allies. But the ceasefire appeared shaky at best as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia struck multiple Ukrainian power plants on Sunday, including […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":519327,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-571871","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n