Ukraine Hits Russia’s Ryazan Refinery Again, Defying Trump. His ‘Energy Ceasefire’ Lasted Four Days — and Only One Side Kept It.

On October 15 Ukraine struck the oil refinery in Russia’s Ryazan region, southeast of Moscow. The plant handles about 5% of Russia’s total refining throughput, according to Reuters.

Regional officials in Ryazan said the attack used 69 drones and Flamingo cruise missiles.

The strike came a day after Zelensky told the Financial Times that Ukraine would answer Russia head-on, even if it meant worse relations with the US.

Trump’s response came in an interview with Newsmax. He called Ukraine’s resumed strikes on Russian refineries a disgrace. He had already said that Ukraine has plenty of targets to choose from, and that striking diesel refineries does nothing to help the world.

Four Days, One Side

Trump declared an “ENERGY CEASEFIRE” on October 11, saying both sides had agreed. Moscow said it had agreed to nothing.

What followed:

• Ukraine held off on Russian energy targets after the announcement.
• Russia did not. It struck natural gas facilities and fuel stations in Kharkiv the day of the announcement. Between October 14 and 15 it sent 360 drones against infrastructure in central Ukraine, Reuters reported.
• October 15: Ukraine hit Ryazan.

The truce Trump announced was observed by one party for four days. The party that observed it was the one he is now criticizing.

Why Ryazan Matters to Washington

Ryazan is not a new target. Ukraine struck it in September, during the envoys’ visit to Kyiv. Strikes like it are why Russia halted diesel exports in July.

It also matters to Trump’s own plan. After his October 9 call with Putin, he announced Russian diesel for the US and world markets, with the largest tranche — up to 3 million tons — depending on the condition of Russia’s refineries. Every refinery Ukraine hits shrinks that tranche. US diesel averages $6.28 a gallon, and the midterms are November 3.

Weapons Washington Doesn’t Control

The Flamingo is a Ukrainian-built cruise missile, and Ukraine’s long-range attack drones are made at home too. That matters because of the pressure the Financial Times described last week: a possible halt to the sale of US weapons that reach Ukraine through NATO allies. Cutting those sales would hurt Ukraine’s air defense, but it would not take away the tools used on Ryazan.

Intelligence is a different lever. In 2025 the FT reported that US intelligence had helped Ukraine plan long-range strikes on Russian energy sites. A pause in intelligence sharing, also raised in last week’s reports, would reach this campaign directly.

Zelensky has made a calculated bet. The energy ceasefire as Trump designed it asks Ukraine to give up its most effective pressure on Russia first, while protection for Ukraine’s own grid sits in a later phase Moscow has not accepted. Russia’s 360-drone attack showed how that works in practice. Zelensky is betting that Washington’s sharpest public threat — cutting weapons sales — does not touch the homemade missiles and drones that carry this campaign, and that Trump will not cut off the air defense Ukraine needs for winter. The cost is real. Trump is three weeks from an election, blames the Russia-Ukraine war for diesel prices, and has already said Ukraine needs a new leader. The next move is Washington’s: whether the intelligence and weapons pauses reported last week become policy.

The Other Side

Trump’s argument has substance. Refineries supply fuel to civilians and to world markets, and taking Russian diesel off the market raises prices in Europe — Ukraine’s main funders — as well as in the US. Ukraine has military targets it could hit instead. And it remains heavily dependent on the US, especially for Patriot interceptors, which are hard to replace before winter. Risking that support over one refinery is a gamble. Refinery damage can also be repaired in weeks, while a break with Washington could last much longer.