Zelensky accuses Putin of using the Christmas truce for his military strategy

Ukraine's president criticizes that Russia has not previously accepted his peace offers

MADRID, 6 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenski, has accused his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Thursday of using as a military strategy the truce announced by the Kremlin on the occasion of Orthodox Christmas.

"Those who continued the terror against our country and sent all those people of theirs to slaughter, rejecting our offers to stop Russian aggression, certainly do not value life and definitely do not seek peace," Zelensky said during his evening address to the ukrainians.

"Now they want to use Christmas as a cover to stop, at least briefly, the advance of our men in Donbas and bring equipment, ammunition and mobilized men closer to our positions," he charged.

In this sense, the Ukrainian president has indicated that "everyone knows how the Kremlin takes advantage of the breaks in the war to continue with renewed impetus."

Thus, he has reiterated that the war will end when his soldiers leave the country or when the Ukrainian troops "throw them out", since "people are tortured, electrocuted, raped (...) every day while their soldiers are on (Ukrainian) soil )".

Zelensky "has wanted to remind Russian citizens" that the Ukrainian peace proposals "seem" that "they have not been heard by the leaders of their country."

Along these lines, he stressed that on November 15 - when the number of dead Russian soldiers was 82,000 dead - kyiv proposed the withdrawal of troops from Ukrainian territory, as a "guaranteed and reliable measure to cease fire, the casualties and war".

Subsequently, on December 12, Zelenski sent a peace formula to Putin to withdraw the troops on Christmas Day: "Already that day, the number of Russian soldiers killed was almost 95,000," he stressed, while confirming that To date, almost 110,000 Russian troops have died in the war.

After that, the Ukrainian leader has assured that "Russia will not be able to hide in silence its preparations for a new wave of aggression against Ukraine and all of Europe", warning that the details of an escalation "will be known to the world".

"What is needed is for the citizens of Russia to find the courage to free themselves from their shameful fear of a man in the Kremlin, at least for 36 hours, at least on Christmas," he joked, referring to the terms of the ceasefire. from Moscow.

Hours before, Putin ordered a 36-hour ceasefire to be established on the occasion of Orthodox Christmas, after Patriarch Kirill, the highest representative of this Church, requested it.

"Taking into account the request of Patriarch Kirill, I urge Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to implement a ceasefire on the entire front line on January 6 from 12:00 (local time)," said the Kremlin in a statement.

Thus, Putin would have stipulated that the truce remain in force until 00:00 on January 8, noting that the measure has been taken "taking into account the large number of citizens who profess the Orthodox religion and who live in combat zones."

"We call on the Ukrainian authorities to declare a ceasefire and allow them to attend the celebrations on the occasion of Christmas," which according to Orthodox tradition falls on January 7.