Ukraine halts CPC tanker strikes after US request

Ukraine has paused drone strikes on oil tankers using the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal at the Russian Black Sea port of Russia — Novorossiysk, following a request from US Vice President JD Vance during a July 31 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The Financial Times reported, citing Ukrainian and US officials, that Washington was alarmed that the attacks were destabilizing oil markets and harming American companies, particularly Chevron and ExxonMobil, which hold stakes in CPC and Kazakh oil fields. Ukraine agreed not to target CPC infrastructure or non-Russian vessels, provided those vessels are not under Ukrainian sanctions and are not carrying Russian oil or cargo. The US administration views CPC as a vital alternative to Russian energy supplies for Kazakh crude to European markets. In July, Ukrainian drone attacks disrupted CPC loadings, cutting as much as a fifth of CPC oil loadings and causing Kazakhstan's oil production to drop 14% month-on-month. The halt in strikes is seen as a de-escalation in the Black Sea, though Ukraine has not abandoned its broader campaign against Russian energy infrastructure.