Trump-Putin Call Ends in 'Energy Infrastructure Ceasefire'

TaiwanPlus News

Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to stop attacking Ukraine energy infrastructure but has refused to commit to a 30-day full ceasefire as proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

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00:00Another uneasy night for residents of Ukraine's capital Kiev, as air raid sirens wail and

00:10explosions ring out.

00:14Many here unconvinced that peace with Russia is any closer after President Vladimir Putin

00:19had a call with US President Donald Trump, agreeing to a 30-day pause on hitting Ukraine's

00:25energy infrastructure.

00:26I think that if Russia really stops hitting Ukraine's infrastructure, it will mean that

00:33this is a step towards a truce. But to be honest, I don't really believe that it will

00:40last.

00:41And talking about peace with such people will not lead to anything in the future.

00:51Trump, who has made brokering peace in Ukraine a top priority of his presidency, said the

00:5790-minute phone conversation with his Russian counterpart was a very good and productive

01:02one.

01:04And although Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the potential first phase

01:08of a ceasefire, he says the lack of details leaves him feeling uneasy.

01:13We don't have any trust in Putin. So I say, we need to understand how technically it will

01:26happen, so that it doesn't depend solely on their wishes. That's all.

01:33Trump's push for peace, which has included withdrawing support from Ukraine to force

01:37it to the negotiating table, has upended this war, strained U.S.-Europe relations and

01:43put Putin in a stronger position during negotiations.

01:47Well, Russia is trying to get a ceasefire where no additional military aid arrives in

01:54Ukraine. And that would be devastating for Ukraine, because Russia will continue to receive

02:01its military supplies, both from its domestic sources and likely from the Iranians and the

02:06North Koreans. So it would greatly handicap Ukraine. And of course, the longer it went

02:11on, the more handicapped Ukraine would become.

02:15Russia's targeting of Ukraine's energy infrastructure has crippled the country throughout the grinding

02:19three-year war. Putin's agreement to cease these attacks, perhaps a positive step towards

02:25peace, but one viewed with deep scepticism here in Ukraine and beyond.

02:31Patrick Chen and Rick Lowatt for Taiwan Plus.

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