During the nine years of the war, the Russian Federation never adhered to the armistice agreements.

This was announced by Deputy Minister of Defense Hanna Malyar in her Telegram channel. “During the nine years of the war, the Russian Federation never adhered to the cease-fire agreements. In total, during the fighting during the ATO period, there were 11 attempts to establish a more or less stable cease-fire regime, which was agreed upon by the parties within the framework of the Trilateral Contact Group…”, – she said.

However, all “ceasefires” were disrupted by deliberate actions of the enemy. “For example, during the so-called “comprehensive spring truce” of 2018, during the 22 days of declared “silence”, the enemy fired at least 153 shots, as a result of which six Ukrainian servicemen were killed and 12 were injured,” the deputy minister noted.

She also reminded that during the operation of the United Forces, Ukraine negotiated a bilateral ceasefire several times, but its results were similar to the previous ones.

“In 2019 alone, the combat losses of the Ukrainian army in Donbas amounted to 97 dead. In 2020, until the beginning of the last ceasefire in July, another 32 servicemen of the armed forces will die, and 220 will be wounded,” Malyar reported.

According to her, on July 27, 2020, another “full and comprehensive ceasefire regime” officially began, but the enemy observed it for only half an hour. In particular, around 00:20, the occupiers fired at units of the 36th separate brigade of marines, and another shelling was recorded at around 9 in the morning.

“Finally, from July 27, 2020 to July 27, 2021, more than 2,000 enemy shellings were recorded. Therefore, only the withdrawal of Russian troops from the territory of Ukraine will mean a real ceasefire and the end of aggression,” the deputy minister emphasized.

Christmas truce

As reported, on January 5, Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to introduce a “ceasefire regime along the entire line of combat engagement” from 12:00 on January 6 to 00:00 on January 7.

The Kremlin urged Ukraine to do the same.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that Russia wants to use Christmas as a cover to stop the advance of Ukrainian troops in Donbas and bring equipment, ammunition and mobilized troops closer to their positions.

Mykhailo Podolyak, adviser to the head of the President’s Office, called the Russian Federation’s proposal an attempt to trap Ukraine.