The aim of the 36-hour ceasefire is to allow people to attend church services on the Orthodox Church’s Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, i.e. Friday 6 January and Saturday 7 January, reports the Russian news agency IFX. – Russia must leave the Ukrainian territories they occupy, only then will they get a temporary ceasefire, replies Mykhailo Podoljak, who is an adviser to Ukrainian President Zelensky. Advisor to Ukrainian President Zelenskyi, Mikhailo Podoljak. Photo: GENYA SAVILOV / AFP – Keep hypocrisy to yourselves, writes Podoljak on Twitter. Earlier today he dismissed the idea of a ceasefire as “propaganda” and a “trap”. – Bearing in mind the wish of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill, I ask Russia’s Minister of Defense to introduce a ceasefire from 12 (at 10 Norwegian time, ed.) 6 January to 24 (at 22 Norwegian time, ed.) January 7, along the entire front line between both parties in Ukraine, says President Vladimir Putin in a statement reproduced by the news agencies Tass and Ria. – Given that there are many residents in the combat areas who belong to the Orthodox Church, we ask Ukraine to introduce a ceasefire and give them the opportunity to attend church services, the statement says. Following the wishes of the Russian patriarch The supreme leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, has also called for a ceasefire. Patriarch Kirill is the supreme leader of the Russian Orthodox Church. Sensible experts point out that Kirill has very close ties to Russian President Putin. Photo: YULIA MOROZOVA / Reuters – It is a cynical trap, a propaganda element. The Russian Orthodox Church is behaving like a war propagandist, says the Ukrainian president’s adviser Mykhailo Podoljak on Twitter. Turkish President Erdogan also asked Putin to introduce a unilateral ceasefire earlier today in a telephone conversation, according to AFP. An Orthodox church in Bohorodyshne in Donetsk, Ukraine, has been partially destroyed after violent fighting for several months in the area. Photo: DIMITAR DILKOFF / AFP Thinks the move is about legitimacy Professor at the Norwegian Defense Staff School Tormod Heier says Putin’s introduction of a ceasefire can be interpreted in two ways. Professor at the Norwegian Defense Staff School, Tormod Heier. Photo: Håvard Madsbakken The first and most important interpretation is that Putin wants to increase the regime’s legitimacy. – Partly, Putin’s plan is about increasing legitimacy in his own population, and in the part of Donbas that may have to sympathize with Russia. Because by respecting the Orthodox Church’s holidays, the president shows that the country’s fundamental values and ideals are upheld despite the losses suffered by its own soldiers in the Ukraine war, writes Heier in an e-mail to news. He elaborates: – The Christmas holiday is often associated with peace and reconciliation, in line with the Christian cultural heritage of which both Russia and Ukraine are a part; thus the plan for a 36-hour ceasefire is adapted to the cultural and religious context in which the warring parties, and the populations on both sides of the front line, find themselves at this time of year. The second interpretation has to do with strategic considerations, but Heier does not think this is the most weighty reason. – But the ceasefire can also be interpreted as a military attempt to use the Christmas holiday to improve the tactical position in parts of the conflict area. However, this is unlikely since we are only talking about 36 hours, writes Heier.
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Russia introduces temporary ceasefire in Ukraine – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
