The partially US-owned Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), which facilitates landlocked Kazakhstan’s oil exports to the global market via Russia, reported that a drone attacked a Marshall Islands-flagged tanker carrying cargo from a Chevron company as well as an Isle of Man-flagged tanker en route to load oil. This follows the Wall Street Journal reporting that the US warned Ukraine not to attack non-Russian vessels in the Black Sea at Chevron’s behest, which was noted in the CPC’s press release.
It was thought back in February 2025 that “Ukraine Risks Trump’s Wrath After Bombing Partially US-Owned Oil Infrastructure In Russia”, yet continued attacks since then prompted the reassessment that “Ukrainian Drone Attacks Against Kazakhstan’s Oil Export Lifeline Advance Strategic Goals”. After Ukraine just defied the US’ reported warning not to attack non-Russian vessels in the Black Sea, however, it’s unclear exactly what’s going on. The Trump Administration’s response or lack thereof will be telling.
If it’s truly against Ukraine impeding Kazakhstan’s partially US-owned oil exports, then more than a tongue lashing would have to follow since Ukraine will keep defying the US unless it faces consequences, which could hypothetically entail a reduction of arms sales to NATO for passing along to Ukraine. If nothing serious follows, then it would suggest that the Trump Administration cynically prefers advancing the strategic goals connected with these strikes than defending the investments of a top US oil company.
In that scenario, he and his team would also lose a tremendous amount of face due to their rhetoric about defending the interests of American companies abroad, plus it would look like Zelensky called Trump’s bluff keeping in mind the US’ reported warning to Ukraine not to attack non-Russian vessels. While it’s possible that the Wall Street Journal’s report was fake news, the content is nevertheless believable since it’s understandable why Chevron would complain to the Trump Administration.
In fact, it would be unbelievable if that top US oil company didn’t complain about Ukrainian attacks impeding its regional activities, so it should be taken for granted that the report is true. That arguably being the case, the question thus arises about why Ukraine would defy the US, especially right after Zelensky just met Trump at the White House. It could very well be that he didn’t take the US’ warning seriously, perhaps assuming that it was perfunctory and solely to placate Chevron.
Zelensky might also have calculated that the strategic significance of Ukraine’s drone attacks against Russia’s energy infrastructure is more important to the US than Chevron’s economic interests in the CPC, ergo why he doesn’t expect any consequences for defying the US’ reported warning. Relatedly, he could have also game-planned that any such hypothetical consequences would backfire against the Trump Administration since he and his supporters in the US government could spin them as “helping Russia”.
It remains to be seen whether or not Zelensky miscalculated by reportedly defying Trump on this sensitive issue since the US’ response or lack thereof will provide more clarity about why this happened. For the time being, the optics are terrible for the Trump Administration since it looks like Ukraine called its bluff with the expectation that no consequences will follow, thus exposing the rhetoric from him and his team about defending the interests of American companies abroad as hollow.
