Viktor Yushchenko wrote an open letter to Trump regarding the trade in Russian diesel fuel
The third president of Ukraine, Viktor Yushchenko, wrote an open letter to U.S. President Donald Trump in which he criticized trade in Russian diesel fuel and reminded Washington of its obligations to Ukraine under the Budapest Memorandum.
In his letter, Ukraine’s third president emphasized that trade with Russia during a full-scale war helps finance Russia’s war machine. He also criticized calls for Ukraine to stop fighting and attempts to tell Ukrainians how to live their lives.
“It seems absurd and painful when calls are made for Ukraine to ‘stop,’ when we’re lectured on whom to elect and how to live, or when the green light is given to trade in Russian diesel.
Every dollar from that diesel fuel buys a missile that will fly into our homes tomorrow.
Trading with the aggressor during such a bloodbath is fueling its war machine,” Yushchenko wrote.
In his letter, Viktor Yushchenko also recalled events from more than thirty years ago, when the Soviet Union was collapsing. He recalled that after gaining independence, Ukraine had the third-largest nuclear arsenal in the world but voluntarily renounced its nuclear weapons, relying on international security guarantees.
“We voluntarily renounced these weapons for the sake of world peace, trusting the words and signatures of the major powers,” noted Ukraine’s third president.
Yushchenko specifically highlighted the role of the United States in the signing of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum. According to him, the document provided security guarantees and respect for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
“In 1994, the U.S., together with its partners, signed the Budapest Memorandum, providing Ukraine with official guarantees of security, sovereignty, and the inviolability of our borders.
America assumed a moral and legal obligation to be our shield and protector. So how can we forget today—when we are under attack by a treacherous enemy—that Great America signed this document?” Yushchenko wrote.
Thus, Viktor Yushchenko called on Donald Trump to take into account the U.S.’s obligations to Ukraine and the consequences of trading in Russian energy resources during the war.
Yushchenko wrote about this on his Facebook page.
Earlier, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that the agreement between Russia and the U.S. on the supply of diesel fuel is not linked to Moscow’s position in negotiations to end the war against Ukraine.
Ukraine is ready for a mutual energy truce with Russia; however, the proposed conditions could limit Kyiv’s ability to strike at Russian energy infrastructure without ensuring adequate protection for Ukrainian power plants. Analysts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) have warned of such risks.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held talks with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The parties discussed Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, the prospects for an energy truce, and preparations for a meeting of the “coalition of the willing.”
