Kyiv, Moscow Trade Blame on Energy Ceasefire Violation Right After Trump-Putin Call

Kyiv and Moscow accused each other of violating a temporary ceasefire proposal on energy infrastructure on Wednesday.

Kyiv has agreed to a US-backed 30-day ceasefire proposal on March 11. Russian leader Vladimir Putin rejected a total truce but reportedly agreed to a ceasefire on energy infrastructure after a phone call with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday.

However, while the Kremlin said “the appropriate command” was “immediately” given to the Russian military to stop attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure after the call, explosions shook Ukraine just hours after Trump and Putin spoke, and air raid sirens sounded across the country.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said there were hits on civilian infrastructure, including a hospital in Ukraine’s Sumy bordering Russia.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Ministry of Defense claimed that 57 Ukrainian drones were shot down in the early hours of Wednesday. Ukrainian drones also reportedly targeted a Russian oil transport hub in Russia’s Krasnodar Krai.

In response, Russia’s Ministry of Defense blamed Kyiv for “derailing the peace initiatives of the US President” via the attacks.

“It is absolutely clear that we are talking about yet another provocation specially prepared by the Kyiv regime, aimed at derailing the peace initiatives of the US President,” the ministry said in a statement.

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Ukraine secured the return of 175 of its POWs, including 22 outside of exchanges, as part of a prisoner swap following “the call.”

On Wednesday, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius criticized Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure and questioned the effectiveness of the phone call and the so-called ceasefire on energy infrastructure.

“We’ve seen that attacks on civilian infrastructure have not eased at all in the first night after this supposedly ground-breaking, great phone call,” Pistorius said in a TV interview.

Pistorius said Putin’s commitment to stop attacks on energy targets was “basically nothing” because such infrastructure in Ukraine was already the “best protected,” adding that Putin is “playing a game” and questioned Putin’s sincerity in ceasefires.