Trump tells Zelenskyy to stop hitting Russian diesel supplies

A global surge in diesel prices is being driven by the Russia-Ukraine-war" class="entity-link entity-event" data-entity-id="1200" data-entity-type="event">Russia-Ukraine war, the US president says.United States President Donald Trump has urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to halt strikes on Russian diesel infrastructure, saying they were to blame for a global fuel shortage that was driving up prices, and not the war with Iran.“Mr. Zelenskyy has to do one thing: he has to stop knocking out diesel fuel in Russia,” Trump said on Sunday, speaking to reporters during a trip to the Republic of Ireland. “We spoke to Mr Zelenskyy about it. ⁠There are plenty of other targets. Don’t ⁠hit diesel fuel. That’s hurting the world.”Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Saudi Arabia shuts critical oil pipeline after drone attack: What it meanslist 2 of 3Diesel price hits all-time high in US amid Iran war woeslist 3 of 3Iran and Ukraine wars: Why ship fuel is running short, and why it mattersend of listA wave of long-distance Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian oil refineries in recent months has reduced that country’s fuel production, triggering petrol shortages across ‌the country.Ukraine, which faces regular Russian attacks on its own energy infrastructure, says refineries are legitimate military targets. Kyiv says Russia’s oil industry both funds and directly fuels Moscow’s more-than-four-year-old invasion of its neighbour.Fuel prices are weighing on Americans as they prepare to vote in midterm US elections in November.The price of diesel hit an all-time high in the US on Friday, reaching a national average of $6.06 a gallon ($1.60 per litre) according to the American Automobile Association (AAA), which tracks daily prices. The price of diesel a year ago, according to AAA, was $3.71 a gallon ($0.98 per litre).The fuel has a significant impact on the cost of transportation, and is used by ships, trains, and trucks to move international goods, many of which are now more expensive, as those costs are passed on to consumers.