In February last year, in the Oval Office of the White House, U.S. President Donald Trump had a heated confrontation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump's comment “you have no credentials to act” made Zelenskyy extremely embarrassed, and he even faced ridicule from the public. Times have changed, but now Trump has changed his words, saying that Zelenskyy performed “remarkably” in the conflict against Russian troops.
"He performed quite well; at least he stabilized the situation. Although both sides suffered many casualties, I think he did a good job." On June 24 local time, Trump said this when addressing reporters in the White House about Zelenskyy.
According to analysts cited by AFP, Ukraine seems to be becoming more and more effective on the battlefield, but its cities remain targets of Russian attacks. Currently, this conflict between Russia and Ukraine has lasted longer than World War I.
According to Reuters, reported on June 25 local time, Zelenskyy stated in a speech the night before (June 24) that Ukraine would launch preemptive attacks against Russian facilities used in military conflicts. At the same time, Kiev is expanding its attacks on Russian energy infrastructure, attempting to force Moscow to negotiate.
Zelenskyy said: "I have instructed our intelligence and military departments to take preemptive actions against the facilities used by Russia to expand 'war operations'."
In February last year, Trump and Zelensky had a heated argument at the White House. Video screenshot
According to Reuters, on June 24 local time, Ukrainian drones caused power outages in the largest city in Crimea, which is under Russian control. They also attacked facilities in central and southern Russia. As Kiev continues to target oil refineries and energy assets, Russia's fuel crisis has worsened.
Reports cited industry insiders as saying that the Moscow refinery, located in the capital, will be shut down for at least six months after being attacked by Ukrainian drones and suffering severe damage. This situation will further exacerbate the fuel shortages faced by Russia.
A rare official report released on June 24 local time shows that Russia's production of petroleum products and coke in May decreased by 13.5% year-on-year, with the decline further widening compared to previous months.
As the world's third-largest oil producer, Russia has ceased to publish most of its oil production and export data since the outbreak of the Russo-Ukrainian conflict in 2022.
AFP reported that Trump and Zelenskyy last met during the G7 summit held in France not long ago. During that meeting, the leaders of the participating countries agreed to increase pressure on Russia in order to end the Russian-U Ukrainian conflict that has lasted for over four years.
After the meeting, Zelenskyy posted on social media, saying, "Thank President Trump for his attention to Ukraine and his willingness to promote peace."
After the meeting with Zelenskyy, Trump said that he was beginning to reconsider imposing sanctions on Russian oil.
Before the G7 summit, the United States granted and later extended sanctions exemptions for Russian oil cargoes that were already in transit. This move caused unease among European allies at the time.
