Ukraine pauses strikes on Russian refineries after pressure from Trump, WSJ reports

Ukraine's military has ​paused its strikes on ‌Russian oil ​refineries after pressure from US President Donald Trump, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing ‌people with knowledge of the operations.

Ukrainian units carrying out long-range strikes were told in mid-October that the campaign against refineries was effectively on hold once ‌missions already in motion were completed, the Journal reported. The unofficial pause ‌is expected to last until after the US midterm elections and potentially deeper into November, it added. Russia has meanwhile stepped up attacks on Ukrainian energy and civilian ⁠infrastructure.

Reuters could ​not immediately ⁠verify the report. The news of a pause comes amid renewed efforts to revive US-backed ⁠peace talks to end Europe's deadliest conflict since World War Two.

Relations between Trump ​and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy have taken a sharp downward turn in ⁠recent weeks, with Trump growing increasingly frustrated over Ukrainian strikes on Russian energy infrastructure as ⁠diesel ​prices hit record highs. Ukraine had refused to halt the strikes, saying its long-range drone campaign is its only viable response ⁠to years of Russian bombardment. That prompted Trump to announce a deal to buy ⁠diesel from ⁠Moscow and waive sanctions on Moscow authorized by a bill he signed into law in September.