Trump claims that he convinced Putin not to attack Kiev for a week. “A lot of people said, 'Don't waste the call. You're not going to get this.'”
Donald Trump says he has convinced Vladimir Putin to halt attacks on Kiev and other Ukrainian cities for a week amid a humanitarian crisis exacerbated by extremely cold temperatures.
Trump says he convinced Putin to stop the attacks for a week. AFP PHOTO
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday, January 29, that he asked Vladimir Putin to stop attacks on Kiev and other Ukrainian cities for a week, and he accepted, notes APNews.
The White House leader's request to the Russian president came after many buildings in Ukraine were left without heating due to extremely low temperatures following massive bombings.
“They (Ukrainians, no) have never experienced such extreme cold. I personally asked President Putin to stop launching attacks on Kiev and other cities for a week. He agreed to do so, and I must tell you, it's very nice.” said Donald Trump, during a meeting of the American cabinet, emphasizing that many doubted that his approach would be successful.
“A lot of people said, 'Don't waste the call. You're not going to get this,'” Trump reported, adding: “And he did. And we're very happy they did.”
Trump said he was pleased with Putin's acceptance of this “pause”, insisting that it would protect Ukrainian civilians during a period of extreme cold and that his initiative was, in his view, an important gesture in managing the humanitarian crisis.
Asked Thursday if Russia and Ukraine were discussing a mutual end to attacks on energy facilities, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on the possibility, maintaining uncertainty over a formal or documented agreement between the two sides.
Several Russian television channels reported that a ban on attacks on facilities in Kyiv and the region, as well as on infrastructure across Ukraine, was introduced as of 07:00 on Thursday, January 29. Later, the commander of the special forces unit KRAKEN, officer of the GUR of the Ministry of Defense, Konstantin Nemicev, suggested that Kiev and Moscow agreed to start an energy truce, writes Zerkalo Nedeli.
