Ukraine’s military has paused its long-range strikes on Russian oil refineries after pressure from US President Donald Trump, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people with knowledge of the operations.
According to the Journal, Ukrainian units carrying out the strikes were told in mid-October that the campaign was effectively on hold once missions already in motion were completed. The unofficial pause is expected to last until after the US midterm elections, and possibly deeper into November.
Reuters, which reported the Journal’s account, said it could not immediately verify the report. The Hourly News has not independently confirmed it either, and readers should treat the details as reported, not established.
The reported pause comes amid renewed US-backed efforts to revive peace talks to end the war in Ukraine — Europe’s deadliest conflict since the Second World War — and at a moment when relations between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy have sharpened.
Russia, meanwhile, has stepped up its own attacks in recent weeks, according to the same reporting. If confirmed, a pause would mark a significant shift: Ukraine’s refinery strikes have been one of its main tools for imposing economic costs on Moscow deep inside Russian territory.
Sources: Wall Street Journal reporting via Reuters — “Ukraine pauses strikes on Russian refineries after pressure from Trump, WSJ reports” (30 Oct 2026). Reuters noted it could not immediately verify the report.
