Russia and Ukraine are trading responsibility for the ongoing Air Force attacks against civilian targets in Ukraine regions and Donetsk’s civilian targets and Russian Krasnodar energy targets. Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to the halt for 30 days in an attack on Ukrainian energy infrastructure targets following a call from President Donald Trump.
So, will halt the energy attack be the first step towards securing peace in Ukraine, or was it just a stagnant tactic that would drag the war down? This is what we know so far.
What did Trump and Putin agree? What did they disagree with?
Trump and Putin had been making long calls discussing the ongoing Russian war with Ukraine.
Following the call, the White House and the Kremlin announced that the two leaders have agreed to a 30-day suspension on attacks on Russian and Ukraine’s energy infrastructure targets.
However, President Putin has stopped agreeing to stop attacking missiles, drones and bombs across the Black Sea and the frontlines. Ukrainian President Voldy Meezelensky agreed to a 30-day ceasefire proposal from Trump on March 11th.
Russia and the US said they would begin discussions on the conditions for a ceasefire in the Black Sea.
There were several differences between the statements released by the White House and the Kremlin, leading to uncertainty among observers and analysts. In particular, Russia included some requests in its statement, and the White House did not mention them.
“We don’t know a lot because there’s a difference in what the White House and the Kremlin reported from this call,” Keel Giles, a senior consulting fellow at the London-based Chatham House think tank, told Al Jazeera.
“At this point, peace appears to be even further distant as a result of Russia’s additional demands,” Giles said.
What did the White House say?
The White House statement is shorter than what was released by the Kremlin and does not spell Putin’s request to achieve a complete ceasefire. The statement includes:
Both Trump and Putin agree that conflicts need to be put to an end and that lasting peace must be established. “The blood and treasures that both Ukraine and Russia have spent in this war will be spent more on the needs of their people,” the statement reads. The US and Russia will expand bilateral relations. The move to peace begins with the halt of energy infrastructure targets, but technological negotiations will soon begin in the Middle East, bringing maritime peace to the Black Sea, bringing full ceasefire and lasting peace. Although no specific location was given to these consultations, in February and March, US mediators met separately with representatives from Russia and Ukraine in Saudi Arabia. The two leaders collaborated on their approach to the Middle East to prevent future conflicts, agreeing that “Iran should not be in a position to destroy Israel.”
What did the Kremlin say?
Putin has set a set of conditions that will be met before the parties move forward towards a ceasefire across the Russian Ukrainian frontline, according to a Kremlin statement. The Kremlin statement included:
Putin expressed his gratitude to Trump for his desire to end the war. The US and Russia will work to improve bilateral relations. Putin agreed to Trump’s request for a 30-day suspension of attacks on energy infrastructure, and ordered Russian troops to pursue them immediately. The Russian President has expressed his fundamental commitment to a peaceful resolution of the Ukrainian war, working with long-term and sustainable US partners. A group of Russian and US experts has been created to determine the terms of the Ukraine settlement. To achieve a ceasefire beyond contact details, Moscow has raised concerns about the re-armed forces of the Ukrainian army, with the “forced mobilization” referring to the allegations that Ukrainian men were rounded up and forced to enlist in the Army. The statement allegedly claimed that “wild terrorist crimes” were committed by Ukrainian forces against Kursk civilians. He also said that an important condition for resolving the conflict is a “complete halt” of foreign military aid and sharing of intelligence with Ukraine. The statement does not specify whether this applies to aid sent by the US or other Ukraine allies. In response to Trump’s appeal to save the lives of Ukrainian soldiers in Kursk, President Putin said Russia is ready to ensure the lives and decent treatment of Ukrainian forces if they surrender in accordance with Russian military and international law. There will be negotiations between the US and Russia to resolve details of a ceasefire in the Black Sea. The Russian statement did not specify whether it would include Ukraine or other European countries. The prisoner exchange will take place on Wednesday when 175 Russians and 175 Ukrainians are released. Additionally, 23 injured Ukrainian soldiers undergoing treatment at a medical facility in Russia will be handed over. So far, there has been no news of such a swap. The US and Russia will make a combined effort to stabilize the situation in the Middle East.
How did Zelenskyy respond?
The Ukrainian president said he supports Kiev’s attempts to bring peace to the region, but added that he would like to see certain details from Trump.
“We need to understand exactly what we support,” he said in a video message.
Calling Trump “a busy guy,” Zelensky continued.
In a press conference with Finland’s President Alexander Stubb on Wednesday, referring to Putin’s request to suspend military and intelligence news support to Ukraine, Zelensky said:
After a fierce meeting in the oval office between Trump and Zelensky on February 28, Washington suspended military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine as Ukrainian leaders were warned for not showing sufficient “thank you” to the United States for their assistance. The support was restored when Washington and Kiev agreed to the terms of peace on March 11th. Experts said the support was important to Kiev, and the suspension temporarily left a gap that could not be wrapped up by Ukraine’s European allies.
Zelenskyy added that he will talk to Trump later Wednesday to get details of his phone call with Putin.
What happened since Trump and Putin spoke?
In a post on X account on Tuesday, Zelenskyy wrote that Russian drones had collided with private infrastructure, including Sumy’s hospitals and cities in the Donetsk region.
“It is these types of nighttime attacks by Russia that destroy our energy sector, our infrastructure, and the normal lives of Ukrainians,” writes Zelenskyy.
“Today, Putin effectively rejected the proposal for a ceasefire altogether. It would be right for the world to respond by refusing to try and extend Putin’s war,” he wrote.
“As evidence of its willingness to end this war, only a true halt of Russia’s strikes against civilian infrastructure can bring peace closer.”
On Wednesday, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported that Ukraine had attacked an energy facility south of Russia’s Krasnodar region.
What kind of energy infrastructure was targeted in Russia and Ukraine?
In early March 2022, Russian forces occupied Europe’s largest Zaphorizhzhia nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine. The power plant has six reactors each with a capacity of 1 gigawatt. In September 2022, hostilities near the site caused Energy Acid, the Ukrainian provincial agency responsible for the plant, to close its last reactor.
In retaliation, Ukraine is targeting Russian oil refineries and industrial sites. These attacks have been on the rise since January. Ukraine is also targeting Russian oil pipelines and pumping stations. In February, the refinery was hit hard, affecting about 10% of Russia’s refinery capacity, showing calculations made by Reuters based on trader data.
“It’s clear that Russia wants to stop the damage that Ukraine has done to Russia’s energy infrastructure,” Giles said.
