Zelenskyy Says Strikes on Russian Refineries Will Resume

If we are being honest, we never believed the relationship between Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump was going to work out. The Ukrainian president is very much anti-Russia while his American counterpart is decidedly pro-Putin. Zelenskyy has the respect of the same Western leaders who feel nothing but contempt for the American president. One is popular at home and abroad, the other is not.

Unfortunately for Zelenskyy, without help from the US, the task of fighting off the Russian invaders becomes much more daunting — a fact Trump has been trying to exploit since Vladimir Putin first helped him get elected. Most famously, the US president, in a phone call that led to his first impeachment, tried to strong-arm his Ukrainian counterpart into producing dirt on Joe Biden in return for military aid.

And last week, Trump sought to coerce Zelenskyy into stopping attacks on Russian refineries.

In this case, however, the US president didn’t wait to see if his threats worked. Not only did he reach a deal with Moscow that provides Putin’s war machine with much-needed funds in exchange for some diesel that is supposed to ease fuel prices in the US ahead of the midterms (though it likely will not), but he also seems to have hobbled Ukraine’s ability to defend itself.

While Zelenskyy said that his country had, in fact, halted its strikes against Russia’s energy infrastructure, it appears as though Trump still restricted Kiev’s access to vital intelligence while also temporarily throttling Ukraine’s satellite Internet service.

And that seems to be where Zelenskyy is drawing the line.

It’s one thing for him to do Trump’s bidding as long as the US continues to support Ukraine, even in a diminished capacity. However, what’s the point of appeasing him if he actively helps Russia kill Ukrainians?

In an interview with the Financial Times in which he does not mince words, Zelenskyy said the strikes on Russian infrastructure will resume and blasted Trump for his admiration of Putin and other dictators. In addition, the Ukrainian leader criticized the “dangerous” tactic of withholding intelligence and said he did not believe US claims that the failure of the satellite system was caused by a technical problem.

While Zelenskyy’s frustration is understandable, it also leaves him in a tough spot because he knows that defending Ukraine is much easier with the help of the US — assistance that majorities in Congress want to provide much more than Trump does.

Perhaps the Ukrainian president thinks that the upcoming midterms and a likely power shift in Washington give him some leverage.

With Republicans already facing heavy losses, Zelenskyy believes that voters won’t look kindly on Trump siding with Russia.

“This politically is not simple [in America], because everybody will want to ask how it can be when some people are surviving, fighting, dying — and you make… business with the guys with such aggression,” the Ukrainian president told the Financial Times.

Still, this is a gamble on Zelenskyy’s part, as well as an expression of how frustrating it must be to have to rely on someone like Trump for help.

In the past, the two leaders have always managed to paper over their many differences, and that may happen again this time.

However, if there is one thing Trump cannot stand, it is being criticized and challenged in public, so we may also see a disproportionate US response in the coming days.

One thing is clear: The main beneficiary of this latest rift is Putin, and that’s probably just fine with Trump.