Zelensky did not specify how long the suspension lasted or whether intelligence sharing has been fully restored. He also said he expects talks with the American side next week.
As recently as October 17, he said that Washington had signaled the possibility of such a meeting, writes The Insider.
On October 14, Zelensky confirmed in an interview with U.S. public radio NPR that Donald Trump’s administration had threatened to stop intelligence sharing if Ukraine continued striking Russian oil refineries. According to him, the warning was relayed to the Ukrainian military, not to him personally.
He also said that on October 12 and 13, Kyiv did not receive warnings about launches of Russian ballistic missiles. According to him, air raid alerts in Ukrainian cities were issued only after the first explosions, while Trump denied that intelligence sharing had stopped and claimed that the U.S. continued to help Ukraine.
Amid disagreements with Washington, Zelensky announced on October 15 the resumption of strikes on Russian oil refineries after a three-day pause, which Kyiv had agreed to at the request of the U.S. He explained this by saying that Russia continued to attack Ukraine’s energy infrastructure despite the “energy ceasefire” announced by Trump on October 11.
On October 18, Zelensky said that in the week after the announcement of the “energy ceasefire”, Russia attacked Ukraine’s energy and oil and gas facilities 76 times. According to him, just over the past night the strikes hit substations in Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi, and Odesa regions, and tens of thousands of families remain without electricity. He also claimed that over the week Russian forces launched nearly 2,700 strike drones, 1,700 aerial bombs, and 66 missiles.
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