Putin’s Christmas Truce: Glimmer of Hope or Propaganda? Amazon is cutting more than 18,000 jobs

In the past ten months of the offensive war against Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin has certainly not shown much charity. Many should have been all the more surprised when he announced a one-and-a-half-day ceasefire for the Orthodox Christmas celebrations from this Friday. Believers should be able to attend Christmas Mass, the Kremlin said on Thursday. It is the first time since the outbreak of war at the end of February that Russia has unilaterally declared a ceasefire along the entire frontline – but whether this will ultimately be implemented remains to be seen. Kiev senses a trap and sees it as pure propaganda behavior.

Putin’s order reads literally: “Taking into account Patriarch Kirill’s call, I order the Russian Ministry of Defense from January 6 at noon (10:00 CET) to January 7 at midnight (22:00 CET) along the entire line of armed forces to carry out the conflict in Ukraine.” Earlier, Kirill, the influential leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, called for a ceasefire in Ukraine over Christmas. The Orthodox Churches in Russia and Ukraine traditionally celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on January 7 according to the Julian calendar.

Ceasefire agreements have so far always been confined to the local area – for example in the early months of the war around the besieged port city of Mariupol, where both sides repeatedly accused each other of violations. In addition, there is currently a periodically functioning border crossing in the southern Ukrainian region of Zaporizhia between the Russian-occupied city of Wassylivka and Ukrainian-controlled Kamianske. This is also used by the inspectors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to access the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant near Enerhodar.

Moscow has now called on Kiev to also temporarily silence its weapons, but they angrily refuse. Mykhailo Podoliak, adviser in the Ukrainian presidential office, spoke of a “cynical trap” and “hypocrisy”. “Russia must leave the occupied territories – only then will there be a ‘temporary ceasefire’,” he wrote on Twitter, referring to the illegally annexed territories of Kherson, Zaporizhia, Luhansk, Donetsk and the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea Unlike the Russian adversary, Ukraine does not attack foreign territory or kill civilians.

It was a purely “propaganda gesture”, Podoljak later added. “Russia is trying by all means to reduce the intensity of the fighting and the intensity of the attacks on its logistics centers, at least temporarily.” Kiev will therefore not respond to Moscow’s “deliberately manipulative” initiatives.

Russian political scientist Tatyana Stanovaya, who lives abroad, also says: “The Christmas Truce fits perfectly into Putin’s logic, in which Russia acts on the positive side of history and fights for justice.” In addition, the 70-year-old Kremlin chief wants to avoid a similar debacle as on New Year’s Eve by temporarily suspending hostilities, Stanovaya writes in the Telegram news service. On the night of January 1, dozens and possibly hundreds of Russian soldiers were killed in a Ukrainian attack in Makiivka in the Donetsk region.

The federal government also reacted cautiously. “We have taken note of the announcement,” said a government spokesman in Berlin. “Any cessation of hostilities helps save lives.” The fact remains, however, that Russia must completely withdraw its troops from Ukraine and thus end this war at any time. “We continue to call on Russia to do this.”

In particular, it remains to be seen whether the Russian soldiers will actually abide by their own ceasefire – especially if Ukrainian reconquest efforts on the more than 500-mile (800 km) front line continue through Christmas. Will the Russians shoot back? The ceasefire will probably only have a limited impact on the immediate front area. It is possible that there will be no Russian missile and drone attacks during these 36 hours of Christmas, at least in other Ukrainian regions – unlike New Year’s Eve. (sda/dpa)