Moscow ignores 'energy truce' and launches wide-scale attack on Ukrainian infrastructure

The escalating tensions in US-Ukrainian relations, particularly between Washington and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, have had repercussions on the ground situation at the front lines. Moscow, which had not previously committed to the “energy truce” announced by US President Donald Trump, launched a wide-ranging attack on energy infrastructure in Kyiv and its surroundings, as well as in other Ukrainian cities. Kyiv sharply criticized Washington, accusing it of “helping Russia in its war” amid a reduction in intelligence support, despite US administration assurances that cooperation with Ukraine in this area has not been scaled back.

Following a violent night during which Russian missiles targeted dozens of critical sites in the energy and communications sectors, debates intensified over the impact of Washington-Kyiv tensions on military operations and the broader political settlement process. The Kremlin sought to affirm that it does not wish to see the rift between Washington and Kyiv widen.

Russian presidential spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that “disagreements between Kyiv and Washington will not contribute to accelerating progress toward a peaceful settlement in Ukraine.” He added that while “the approach of the Kyiv regime is well known, it is unlikely that their dispute with the US president will benefit them.”

The remark appeared primarily aimed at Zelenskyy’s efforts to bolster European security guarantees in response to rising US criticism and its worsening field implications. In this context, Zelenskyy reiterated his warning that Ukraine “has not received two warnings about ballistic missile launches on Kyiv.”

After meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Zelenskyy wrote: “I informed you about the Russian strike on Kyiv and that we did not receive any warning from our partners regarding the ballistic missile launch. This is the second time Ukraine has received no warning.”

Zelenskyy had previously complained about the decline in US intelligence support, which left the Ukrainian army unable to detect Russian missile launches in a timely manner. Washington, however, stated that it has not reduced cooperation with Kyiv in this area. The website Politico later reported that the US attributed the lack of warning to poor weather conditions. Meanwhile, CNN reported that Washington had warned Kyiv over the weekend that it was preparing to halt intelligence data sharing. According to Politico, the Ukrainian army may also be denied access to Starlink satellite communications.

This situation has further fueled Ukrainian leaders’ discontent with Washington. A senior Ukrainian official accused the United States of assisting Russia in its war against Ukraine, asserting that Washington had not warned Kyiv in advance about Russian attacks and had slowed down Starlink services.