Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has rejected Russian President Vladimir Putin’s call for a 36-hour cease-fire on Orthodox Christmas, which falls on Thursday.
According to Al Jazeera, Zelensky described the move by his neighboring foe as a cover to halt Ukraine’s progress in the eastern Donbas region.
In his nightly video, Zelensky, speaking in Russian and addressing both the Kremlin and Russians, said Moscow had repeatedly ignored Kyiv’s own peace plan.
He went on to say that the war would end when Russian troops left Ukraine or were expelled.
“They now want to use Christmas as a cover, albeit briefly, to halt our boys’ advances in Donbas and bring equipment, ammunition, and mobilized troops closer to our positions,” he said.
“What good will that do them? Only an increase in their overall losses.”
Putin declared a one-day cease-fire in Ukraine “along the entire line of contact” to commemorate Orthodox Christmas, which is observed on January 7.
Russian officials urged Ukraine to “declare a cease-fire and allow citizens to attend Christmas services.”
However, the church hierarchy has recognized Ukraine’s central Orthodox Church as independent since 2019 and rejects any notion of allegiance to the Moscow patriarch.
Furthermore, Ukrainian Christians have changed their calendar to celebrate Christmas on December 25, just like the rest of the world.
During his speech, Zelensky continued, “The whole world knows how the Kremlin uses interruptions in the war to continue the war with new strength.”
“However, in order to end the war sooner, we need something completely different. We need Russian citizens to find the courage to free themselves from the shameful fear of one man in the Kremlin, even if only for 36 hours during Christmas.”
