Trump claims Putin has ‘agreed ceasefire over Ukrainian cities’ after 'very nice' phone call
The US president pointed to “extraordinary cold” weather hitting Ukraine in the coming week as a reason for the Kremlin to pause its assaults
Vladimir Putin has allegedly agreed to a partial, week-long ceasefire in Ukraine following a phone call with Donald Trump.
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Speaking during a Cabinet meeting on Thursday, President Trump said a temporary peace deal to stop Russia from bombing Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure had been reached.
“I personally asked President Putin not to fire into Kyiv and various towns for a week, and he agreed to do that,” Mr Trump said.
The US president pointed to “extraordinary cold” weather hitting Ukraine in the coming week as a reason for the Kremlin to pause its assaults.
“It was very nice. A lot of people said, ‘Don’t waste the call, you’re not going to get that.’ And he did it,” Trump added.
The Kremlin has so far declined to comment on Mr Trump’s claims.
These comments come after a Russian drone attack killed three people in Ukraine's southern Zaporizhzhia region overnight
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy this week warned that Moscow is building up for another large-scale barrage despite plans for further US-brokered peace talks at the weekend.
The Zaporizhzhia strike caused a major blaze in an apartment building, according to emergency services.
Firefighters also worked through the night to put out fires in the central Dnipropetrovsk region, where two people were injured, officials said.
Mr Zelenskyy said Ukrainian intelligence reports indicate Russia is assembling forces for a major aerial attack.