NU.nl regularly provides an overview of the situation in Ukraine. With this weather: Russia proposes a ceasefire to celebrate Orthodox Christmas. Ukraine speaks of ‘pure propaganda’ and ‘trivial trick’ and rejects the proposal.
The Kremlin proposed a ceasefire from 12:00 to midnight on January 6 on the night of January 7-8. President Vladimir Putin would have ordered the defense minister not to carry out attacks during the Orthodox Christmas.
Ontvang meldingen bij nieuws over de oorlog in Oekraïne
Russian Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas Eve on January 6 and Christmas Day the next day. Holidays for Orthodox Christians are different because their church uses the Julian calendar. This means that many holidays are two weeks later than in the West. Mainly Catholic and Protestant Christians live there and the Gregorian calendar is used.
Many Orthodox Christians also live in Ukraine. Last year, the Ukrainian branch split from the Russian Orthodox Church due to the war. Many Ukrainians celebrated Christmas on December 25 and 26.
Ukraine calls proposal ‘transparent makeup’
Ukraine reacted with contempt to Russia’s proposal for a “temporary” ceasefire. Presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak described the proposal as “pure propaganda”. The Russians would only buy time to regroup their troops and strengthen their defenses in the areas they occupy.
“This is a very ostentatious and transparent ploy. They have no desire to end the war,” Podolyak said in a statement. Presidential adviser Volodymyr Zelensky stressed that Russia carried out rocket attacks on December 25 and January 1. Additionally, the Russians targeted religious buildings and sites in Ukraine during the war.
Zelensky himself later responded in similar words. In his daily message, he stressed that the war will not end until all Russian soldiers have left his country or have been “kicked out”.
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Armistice Day was intended to validate the Russian narrative
By rejecting Ukraine, Russia could argue that the country has no respect for religious customs and is not open to peace. This is the story that the state media has been telling the Russian people since the beginning of the invasion.
Last Thursday, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, already proposed a truce during the Orthodox Christmas season. That proposal was immediately rejected by Ukraine. Podolyak called it “a cynical trap” by the Russians and said that Kirill does not deal with such deals.
2:13Westen also does not take the proposal seriously
US President Joe Biden was not impressed by Russia’s proposal for a ceasefire. Biden also pointed out that the Russians bombed “hospitals, kindergartens and churches” on Christmas and New Years. Biden agrees with Podolyak that it is an attempt for Russia to catch its breath.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock agrees. “If Putin wants peace, he must bring his soldiers home,” she wrote on Twitter. “A so-called ceasefire does not give freedom and security to people who live in fear every day under Russian occupation.”
Even UN Secretary-General António Guterres is suspicious. He would like a Christmas truce, but he says he “is no substitute for peace.”
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The United States and Germany are sending combat vehicles and missile defenses to Ukraine
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called Biden on Thursday. The Americans and the Germans agreed new weapons send to Ukraine. This includes armored vehicles that can be used by land forces. The Americans supply Bradley and the Germans supply Marder. Ukraine will also receive a Patriot air defense system from Germany. The Americans have provided that system before.
Biden and Scholz reaffirmed their commitment and will continue to support Ukraine’s sovereignty and independence. Both countries will teach Ukrainian soldiers how to handle weapons and vehicles. It’s not immediately clear how many combat vehicles they will send.
The US has been using Bradleys since the 1980s and has thousands of them. They are less powerful than the Abrams tanks requested by Kyiv. President Zelensky asked Germany for the Marders and Leopard 2 tanks, the German counterpart of the Abrams.
A Patriot can fire missiles and aircraft from the sky, up to a height of approximately 20 kilometers and 60 kilometers away. According to Zelensky, Germany is making “an important contribution to the interception of Russian missiles”.
