Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a 36-hour ceasefire to celebrate Christmas. An emphatic “no” from Kyiv
By Athena Papakosta
Moscow has called on the Ukrainian side to declare a ceasefire from 12 noon today until midnight tomorrow so that citizens living in the hostilities can attend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day services, which Russia celebrates, according to the old calendar, on January 7.
Kiev’s rejection of the Russian proposal for a truce was not long in coming with Mykhailo Podoliak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaking of hypocrisy on the part of the Russian president. “The Russian Federation must leave the occupied territories. Only then will there be a temporary truce. Keep the hypocrisy to yourself,” he tweeted.
Immediately after the installation of Podoliak, the Kremlin took the baton in the statements. According to Russia’s Interfax news agency, Dmitry Peskov commented on the statement by the adviser to the Ukrainian president, expressing doubts whether the rejection of the proposed 36-hour ceasefire reflected Zelensky’s view. However, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Dimytro Kuleba, was also placed on the issue, who emphasized that Putin’s announcement “we cannot and should not take seriously”.
An appeal for a cease-fire was made earlier by the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, Kirill, who nevertheless supports Russia’s war in Ukraine, criticizing Kyiv and its partners while maintaining close ties with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin.
The US president, Joe Biden, was also placed on the subject, who emphasized that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, is “looking for some oxygen”, recalling that a little earlier the Kremlin’s occupant “was ready to bomb hospitals, nurseries and churches”.
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which for decades was part of the Russian Orthodox Church, has severed ties with Moscow since the start of the invasion, while at the same time, Kyiv has, for the first time this year, initiated procedures to celebrate Christmas in December 25 to coincide with Western countries.
As analysts note, Putin’s proposal for a cease-fire demonizes Moscow internally by showing that the Russian people are the “good guys” in the case, while the bad guys “Kiev” and “the West” do not respect the Christian faith and do not desire peace.
At the same time, the analysts do not exclude from the equation the fact that Russia is the one that started the war and that the proposal for a truce comes at a special moment in time after the strike, on New Year’s Eve, in Makiivka, from which 89 Russian soldiers died, according to Russia.
The experts also do not rule out that the Russian president wants to avoid another big blow that will look like a repeat of the previous one and even on Christmas day. After all, in Russia at the moment there is resentment about Makiivka with the relatives of the dead Russian soldiers calling for the punishment of the “incompetent”, as they complain, “responsible military officials”.
Read the News today and get the latest news.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news.
With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
