US asked Ukraine to spare tankers in Novorossiysk
US Vice President JD Vance, during a phone call on July 31, asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to stop drone strikes on oil tankers entering the Russian port of Novorossiysk. Financial Times reported this on August 12, citing Ukrainian officials and other sources.
Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal in Novorossiysk. Photo: promelk.ru
According to the publication, Washington is concerned that Ukrainian attacks could further destabilize the global oil market and harm American companies. This refers to tankers transporting oil from Kazakhstan via a pipeline to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal in Novorossiysk.
According to Financial Times, after the conversation between Vance and Zelenskyy, Ukraine did not strike tankers near the CPC terminal. Kyiv reportedly agreed not to attack CPC infrastructure and vessels not belonging to Russia in the Black Sea, provided they are not under Ukrainian sanctions and are not transporting Russian oil or other Russian cargo.
A senior Ukrainian official stated that Kyiv "listens very carefully" to its American partners and has created appropriate mechanisms in response to Washington's request. According to him, the issue of the CPC was regularly discussed during negotiations with the US and Kazakh governments.
Of particular importance to Washington is the fact that American oil companies Chevron and ExxonMobil have stakes in the CPC. The consortium is the main route for exporting Kazakh oil to world markets.
Chevron owns 50% of Kazakhstan's largest oil field, Tengiz, and ExxonMobil owns 25%. Both companies also have stakes in other projects related to oil supplies through the CPC.
An American official noted that the Donald Trump administration views the CPC as an important channel for supplying Kazakh energy resources to European markets. According to Washington, this route is an alternative to oil and other energy supplies from Russia.
However, export volumes through the CPC have decreased in recent months. According to Kpler, approximately 1.3 million barrels of oil per day were shipped through the terminal in July. This is more than 300,000 barrels per day less than in June, and approximately 600,000 less than in May.
Representatives of Vance, Zelenskyy's administration, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan did not comment on the information. CPC, Chevron, and ExxonMobil also declined to comment.
Financial Times notes that this is not the first time American officials have tried to persuade Ukraine not to carry out strikes that could affect American commercial interests.
In February, former Ukrainian Ambassador to the US, Olha Stefanishyna, reported that after a Ukrainian drone strike on the port of Novorossiysk in late 2025, the US State Department sent a diplomatic demarche to Kyiv expressing dissatisfaction.