The Donald Trump administration has threatened to cut off key forms of military support for Ukraine if Kiev continues its attacks on Russian oil refineries. The warning included a possible suspension of intelligence sharing and blocking of the PURL mechanism, through which European countries purchase American weapons for the Ukrainian army.
This is reported by the Financial Times, citing European officials who received calls from American representatives or were informed about the content of the conversations. The contacts were held over the weekend with Kiev and with European capitals. The goal was for Ukraine to stop long-range attacks on Russian energy infrastructure.
“They are calling Kiev... they are calling everyone [in Europe]“, said a European official who received a call from a representative of the US Department of Defense.
The PURL mechanism is also under threat
PURL is a list of Ukrainian priority needs, according to which European partners purchase American weapons for Ukraine. According to European officials, Washington has made it clear that the mechanism could be terminated if Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries continue.
Among the Ukrainian officials contacted by the US side is Pavlo Palisa - a military adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky and a former commander of the 93rd separate mechanized brigade. The White House has not confirmed or commented on the talks.
Trump announces “energy truce“
Against this backdrop, Donald Trump announced on the social network Truth Social that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to immediately stop attacks on each other's energy facilities.
“Energy truce in the war between Russia and Ukraine takes effect immediately. Both sides agree. Do not violate!“, Trump wrote.A senior Ukrainian official close to Zelensky told the Financial Times that Kiev had not been informed of such an agreement. According to him, Ukrainian repair teams were restoring electricity and water supplies in Kiev after Russian strikes at the time Trump published the message.
„Currently, our repair teams are restoring electricity and water supplies in Kiev... Nobody has heard [of a truce]“, the representative said.Thus, the energy truce announced by Trump remains without publicly presented details about its mechanism and how it will be implemented. In parallel, American pressure calls into question Ukraine's future access to American weapons purchased from its European partners, as well as to American intelligence information.
Sources: news.bg, investing.com