President Trump has pointed the finger at Ukraine’s drone campaign against Russian oil infrastructure as the primary driver behind record-high diesel prices in the US, which have surged past $6 per gallon.
The president urged Ukraine to redirect its military efforts away from Russian refining facilities, arguing that the strikes are backfiring on American consumers at the pump.
What the drone strikes have actually done
Ukrainian drones have hit more than 20 Russian refineries, degrading approximately 40% of Russia’s total refining capacity. Russia responded by banning diesel exports to protect its domestic market. The ban effectively pulled about 3% of the world’s daily diesel supply offline.
The logic behind Ukraine’s strategy is straightforward: hit the enemy’s revenue source and degrade its ability to fuel military operations. Diesel powers tanks, trucks, and logistics. From Kyiv’s perspective, refineries are legitimate military targets that serve a dual purpose of weakening Russia’s war machine and its economy simultaneously.
