Former US presidential special envoy Keith Kellogg has backed Ukraine’s continued strikes on Russian oil refineries, arguing that Kyiv is right to maintain military pressure on Moscow.
He suggested that Vladimir Putin’s agreement to supply diesel fuel to international markets could be an attempt to persuade Ukraine to halt attacks on Russia’s oil infrastructure.
Kellogg made the remarks during an appearance on Fox News, commenting on the diesel agreement between Washington and Moscow.
According to Kellogg, Ukraine’s long-range strikes are putting significant pressure on Russia, and the Kremlin may be seeking to use economic arrangements with the United States to ease that pressure.
“I would tell Vladimir Putin, thank you very much. You really helped us out. But I’d look at the underlying motives behind him arranging for diesel coming to the United States and the international market. President Zelensky in Ukraine has been hitting his refineries hard. He’s been attacking deep into Russia,” Kellogg emphasized.
He suggested that Putin may be hoping to use negotiations in Miami involving US representatives and national security advisers from Britain, Germany, and France to secure a reduction in Ukrainian attacks.
“I really just don’t trust President Putin to say he’s doing this out of the goodness of his heart. I mean, I would say thank you very much and take it. But I really don’t trust him. I think he’s doing it for another reason other than just trying to get on the good graces of Americans,” the former special envoy explained.
Kellogg also highlighted what he described as a fundamental difference between Ukrainian and Russian military targeting.
“When you look at Ukraine, they are targeting basically the military-industrial complex. When you look at Russia targeting Ukraine, they’re attacking schools. They’re attacking churches. And I mean, the targeting is a lot different,” he stressed.
In Kellogg’s assessment, Ukrainian strikes are increasingly bringing the consequences of the war directly to Russian territory, forcing ordinary Russians to confront the reality of the conflict. Meanwhile, despite years of fighting and renewed offensive operations, Putin has failed to achieve his objectives.
“But he’s got a big problem. His problem is he is not winning. The Ukrainians have really put pressure on him,” Kellogg declared.
He argued that this pressure helps explain Moscow’s efforts to stop Ukrainian attacks on Russia’s oil refining industry.
“The Russians are trying to say to the Ukrainians and the Americans, well, stop attacking our refineries. They’re not going to do that. They’re going to keep attacking, as they should. It’s a military operation. It’s a war. They’re attacking correctly,” Kellogg concluded.
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