German media: At Trump's request, Putin agreed to a limited ceasefire in Ukraine

President Trump said on January 29 that, given the recent severe cold weather, he had asked Putin to suspend air strikes on Ukrainian cities such as Kyiv for a week. Now, Russia has stated that it has agreed to the request from the United States and implemented a "limited ceasefire" to "create a favorable atmosphere for peace talks."

According to Kremlin spokesperson Peskov, this ceasefire is only valid until February 1, which is far shorter than the one week proposed by Trump.

Peskov said that this ceasefire was indeed proposed by Trump directly to Putin. Previously, Trump had already stated publicly that Putin had agreed to his request.

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy welcomed Trump's proposal and further suggested that both sides should not attack energy infrastructure. "If Russia does not attack our power plants and other energy infrastructure, then we will not attack theirs," he said.

For several weeks, Russia has continuously launched air strikes on energy infrastructure such as power and gas in Ukraine, causing large numbers of people in Ukraine to lose electricity and heating supplies during the severe cold weather. Weather forecasts show that the temperature in the capital Kyiv may drop to minus 30 degrees Celsius on February 1.

New round of negotiations is about to begin

Just before Peskov announced the limited ceasefire, Russia was still launching air strikes on multiple areas in Ukraine. At the same time, both sides are preparing for a new round of peace negotiations under the mediation of the United States. According to the schedule, the next round of talks will be held in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the UAE, on February 1. A week ago, representatives of both sides had already discussed the ceasefire plan proposed by the United States.

At present, the main point of contention between the two sides remains Russia's demand that Ukraine completely abandon Donbas, which Ukraine firmly opposes. Zelenskyy said that the two sides could not reach a compromise on territorial issues, especially parts of the territory in eastern Ukraine. He emphasized that Ukraine has repeatedly stated its willingness to make concessions for a genuine ceasefire, "but this can never undermine Ukraine's territorial integrity."

Ukrainian people are unwilling to compromise

Ukrainian people also lack the willingness to compromise with Russia. According to a survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) at the beginning of this year, 77% of respondents believe that despite Russia's advances, Ukraine can still continue to resist; 69% of the population believes that Russia intends to "commit genocide" or "destroy the Ukrainian nation and state," a proportion higher than 66% a year ago. The proportion of Ukrainians who believe that current negotiations cannot achieve lasting peace is as high as 69%.

Oleksiy Antikovych from the Ukrainian polling agency "Rating Group" said that although most people still have interest in the negotiations, they mainly place their hopes on Zelenskyy, rather than trust Russia or other foreign leaders. Political scientist Oleh Saakjan from the "Resilience and Cohesion Platform" told DW that while the Russian air strikes on energy infrastructure have made Ukrainian people tired, this suppressed anger is turning into greater anger against Russian aggressors.

"For Ukrainian leaders, social cohesion and internal unity are crucial in negotiations. Unconditional support for the president is beneficial in the negotiations. Ukrainians have learned painful lessons from the Minsk agreements, which eventually led to a larger war. Therefore, Ukrainians now understand the importance of unity."

Source: DW

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1855844267629898/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author."