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THE WASHINGTON POSTUpdate

Ukrainian drone hits a St. Petersburg oil terminal; Zelensky holds 40-minute call with Witkoff and Kushner

Political Guyentist · October 19, 20262 min read

THE WASHINGTON POST

Axios called it his first call with senior U.S. officials since Trump's Oct. 9 deal lifting sanctions on Russian diesel; they discussed meeting in person within days.

A Ukrainian drone struck the Petersburg Oil Terminal in St. Petersburg, Vladimir Putin's hometown, after the refinery-only energy ceasefire Trump announced Oct. 11 broke down. Trump then went after Volodymyr Zelensky (President, Ukraine) in public. Zelensky's call with envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner came Sunday, Oct. 18.

The call. Zelensky said they reviewed the teams' Oct. 9 Miami talks and next diplomatic steps, per RBC-Ukraine.

Still open. Axios describes the in-person meeting only as a possibility; no date, place or agenda has been announced.

Catch upwhat happened before · 5 earlier issues
  • Oct. 9 — Trump struck his Russian diesel deal after, a U.S. official told Axios, Zelensky ignored six requests to stop hitting Russian refineries.
  • Oct. 10 — Trump said Ukraine needs "a new president."
  • Oct. 11 — Trump announced an immediate energy ceasefire covering only refineries; Moscow did not confirm it, and Kyiv said it got no warning.
  • Oct. 15 — Ukraine hit a Russian refinery after a three-day pause; Zelensky said Russia never stopped and accused Washington of cutting intelligence and throttling Starlink. Trump called Zelensky "not a good guy."
  • Oct. 16 — EU leaders said they "regret" Trump lifting Russian diesel sanctions.
What satellite images show the drones destroyedPetersburg Oil Terminal: three tanks burning, one destroyed2 details
  • Petersburg Oil Terminal: three tanks burning, one destroyed
  • Ruchyi fuel depot, a separate site: a second tank destroyed

What we’re less sure of4 of 7 claims