Ukrainian Region Suffers Deadly Strikes Following Trump‑Putin Diesel Agreement

KYIV, Ukraine — Russian airstrikes killed at least seven people in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region on Saturday, according to local officials, after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a diesel fuel purchase from Russia that Kyiv warned could fund Moscow’s war effort.

Three of the victims were children, Mykhailo Semikin, head of the Zaporizhzhia regional military administration, said. The bombs struck residential buildings, causing at least ten additional injuries.

Russia and Ukraine continue to exchange long‑range aerial attacks, while ground operations remain largely stalemated more than four and a half years after Moscow’s full‑scale invasion. Ukraine faces intensifying bombardment, with over 55 civilians killed in the past four days.

The latest strikes followed a deal announced by President Trump to procure diesel fuel from Russia, marking a notable shift from previous U.S. pressure on Moscow over the conflict and aimed at easing domestic fuel costs ahead of the midterm elections.

Trump disclosed the agreement on social media Friday, saying it was reached during a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who had previously been expected to address a suspected plague outbreak in Russia.

He said Russia will ship over 300,000 tons of diesel immediately, an additional 500,000 tons in November, and one million tons “immediately thereafter,” with a further three million tons slated for delivery “within a short period of time.”

The announcement stands in sharp contrast to a comprehensive sanctions law signed by Trump just weeks earlier, designed to curtail Russia’s oil and gas revenues that sustain its war against Ukraine.

In an extensive online statement, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that Russia would respond “with further terror and perfidy,” describing the agreement as an investment that could extend the conflict.

“It plays into Russia’s hands, enabling more killings, a longer war, diminished respect for America, and greater global losses and damage,” he added.

The Ukrainian Embassy in Washington issued a statement quoting Zelenskyy’s assessment that the deal was “a weak decision, unfortunately, a weak decision by strong partners.”

Trump’s announcement coincided with a meeting in Miami between his envoys Steve Witkoff and son‑in‑law Jared Kushner and Ukrainian officials, who were negotiating a proposed end to the war.

“I believe our team is simply being used as a smokescreen. And that is certainly not fair. It is certainly not how partners should treat each other,” Zelenskyy remarked.

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