Ukraine has halted drone strikes on oil tankers near Russia's Black Sea port of Novorossiysk after U.S. Vice President JD Vance pressed President Volodymyr Zelensky in a July 31 call, with Washington seeking to protect Kazakhstan's Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) exports and the interests of Chevron and ExxonMobil. No further tanker attacks have been reported near the CPC facility since the call, and Kyiv agreed not to hit CPC infrastructure or non-Russian vessels that are not on Ukraine's sanctions list and are not carrying Russian oil or cargo. Kpler data showed CPC exports sliding from about 1.9 million barrels a day in May 2026 to about 1.3 million in July 2026 after attacks disrupted pumping, more than doubled shipping and insurance costs, and struck a tanker chartered by Exxon on July 17. A source familiar with Ukraine's position said Kyiv is also seeking a U.S. license to produce Patriot interceptor missiles and to buy several hundred before winter, even as it continues attacks on Russian energy infrastructure elsewhere and presses Washington for more air-defense support.