US President Donald Trump has stated that Russia has lost control of its oil refining industry against the backdrop of the war against Ukraine. The American leader has once again called for an end to the hostilities and stated that tens of thousands of people are dying every month. At the same time, independent data confirms a serious deterioration in the situation in the Russian oil refining sector due to systematic Ukrainian strikes.
• Trump stated that Russia had lost control of its oil refining sector.
• The US President has once again called for an end to the war against Ukraine.
• Trump puts the figure at around 25,000 deaths a month, mostly military personnel.
• The IEA confirms a systematic deterioration in the performance of Russian refineries due to Ukrainian strikes.
• In September, a number of large Russian oil refineries halted operations following attacks.
Trump has once again called for an end to the war
In a statement issued on 21 September Donald Trump linked the problems facing the Russian oil refining industry to the war against Ukraine.
«Unfortunately, Russia has lost control of its oil refining industry as a result of the war with Ukraine.».
The US President has also once again called for an end to the hostilities.
«This senseless and endless war with Ukraine must come to an end. The whole world is suffering because 25,000 people, mostly soldiers, are dying every month. What a tragedy!»
Trump has previously cited this figure on several occasions as being approximately 25,000 deaths a month in the Russian-Ukrainian war. In particular, he expressed this view during a meeting with the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy in July. However, it is not possible to independently verify the exact figure, and Trump did not explain how it was calculated.
Russian oil refineries are indeed facing serious problems
These comments on the state of the Russian oil refining industry came against the backdrop of a sharp intensification of Ukraine’s campaign against the Russian Federation’s energy infrastructure.
The International Energy Agency reported in September that regular drone strikes and the complexity of the repairs are cumulative negative effect and are gradually disrupting the operation of Russia’s oil refining system.
According to the IEA, during the first eight months of 2026, the Russian oil refinery came under attack on average once every three days. As of the end of August, only five of Russia’s major factories had not yet been targeted by Ukrainian strikes.
The agency has also revised down its forecast for Russian refining volumes to approximately 4 million barrels per day — approximately 30% below the level prior to the full-scale invasion. One of the problems facing Russia is a shortage of components due to sanctions: damage to complex equipment may require repairs lasting several months.
Several large oil refineries shut down in September
In the weeks since the attacks alone, several Russian factories have been shut down or have had their operations significantly curtailed.
Reuters reported that, following the strikes in September, the Syzran and Saratov Oil Refinery. At the Syzran plant, the main primary processing unit, which accounted for approximately 71% of its capacity, was damaged.
Following the strike on 17 September, operations also came to a halt at the Yaroslavl Oil Refinery. One of the damaged units accounted for approximately 40% of its primary processing capacity, whilst another unit was already undergoing repairs following a previous attack.
On 20 September, during a large-scale attack on Moscow, it was damaged and Moscow Oil Refinery. The Russian authorities have confirmed that drones struck the company’s premises.
The day before, Trump had asked Ukraine not to attack the oil refinery
This new rhetoric is also attracting attention because, just the day before, Trump had called on Ukraine to to cease strikes against Russian oil refineries.
According to the Financial Times, during his conversation with Zelenskyy, the US President raised this issue in the context of the global diesel fuel shortage and high fuel prices. Washington is keen to ensure that Russian diesel exports remain on the world market.
At the same time, Ukraine states that it is prepared to cease strikes on energy infrastructure only on a reciprocal basis — provided that Russia also ceases its attacks on Ukraine’s energy sector and critical infrastructure.
Trump’s statement thus came at a time when the impact of Ukraine’s long-range strikes on the Russian fuel sector is becoming increasingly apparent, and the issue of attacks on energy infrastructure has become a separate topic of discussion between Kyiv and Washington.
