The key facts

  • Trump: No, we did not stop intelligence sharing. We are helping them.
  • Trump believes both Putin and Zelensky want the war to end but do not know how to achieve it.
  • Reuters: on October 13 Russia did not attack Ukrainian energy facilities for the first time; Kyiv Independent earlier reported US demands on Kyiv.

Trump denied reports that intelligence sharing had been halted

US President Donald Trump told journalists that the United States did not stop intelligence sharing with Ukraine. This was reported by Kun.uz citing Clash Report. 'No, we did not stop. We are helping them. We are really helping them come to a final truce. We want the war to end,' the outlet quoted Trump as saying.

Assessment of Putin's and Zelensky's intentions

When asked why he is confident that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants the war to end more than Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky does, Trump said: 'I said that through negotiations — that's what I've been doing all my life. I think Putin wants it too; it seems to me that both of them want it to end. Honestly, both want it to end, but they don't know how to achieve it. There is a lot of hatred there... In the end, everything will be fine. You know why? Because it always has been.'

Comment on the energy truce

Trump also commented on Russia's possible violation of the previously announced energy truce. According to him, Ukraine, allegedly, had struck many of Russia's energy facilities a day earlier. Trump promised to report later on the effectiveness of the energy truce.

Conflicting media reports

Earlier, Kyiv Independent reported that the Trump administration had openly threatened senior Ukrainian officials, demanding they stop strikes on Russian oil refineries: according to the outlet, Washington stated that if Ukraine strikes Russian energy infrastructure during the so-called energy truce, responsibility for this will be placed on Kyiv.

Reuters data on strikes on the energy sector

According to Reuters, on October 13, after Trump's statement about the energy truce, Russia did not strike Ukrainian energy facilities for the first time. Journalists reached this conclusion by analyzing daily reports from the Russian Ministry of Defense.