Putin calls 36-hour unilateral cease-fire for Orthodox Christmas

Russia President Vladimir Putin announced a unilateral 36-hour ceasefire around the 7 January Orthodox Christian celebrations which was quickly rejected by authorities in Kyiv.

The decision by Moscow followed a call to that effect from the patriarch of the Russian orthodox church and from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

In a call with Putin on Thursday, Erdogan also said that negotiations needed to be supported by a "vision for a fair solution".

Ukrainian presidential aide Mikhailo Podolyak quickly responded via Twitter, labelling the truce hypocritical.

"Ukraine doesn't attack foreign territory and doesn't kill civilians," he said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also spoke with Erdogan and later said: "We appreciate Türkiye's willingness to take part in the implementation of our Peace Formula."

That formula included Russia abandoning Ukrainian territory and prosecution of war crimes, demands that Moscow had previously already rejected as well.

Thus, the two countries' positions appeared to be too distant at the moment for talks, but hopes were that some format could be found, perhaps talks without explicit preconditions, if their most core interests could largely be met without further bloodshed.

Both countries' populations also had much to gain over the medium to long-term from successful negotiations and potentially much to lose otherwise after Moscow's tragic decision to invade.

By some estimates, a combined 200,000 military personnel from both sides had been killed or wounded thus far, to which one had to add civilian casualties and the millions that had been forced to flee.

For her part, in a post to Telegram, R.Politik founder, Tatiana Stanovaya, said the offer was a play at generosity for the public.

DeVere Group chief executive officer, Nigel Green, on the other hand said: "Putin's ordering of a ceasefire over Russian Orthodox Christmas is a much-needed, is seemingly a positive humanitarian development.

"[...] We wait and watch with interest."

An earlier offer for talks by Moscow, on the condition that Ukraine accept "realities on the ground" had also been rejected by Kyiv, which had reportedly called for at least the withdrawal of all Russian troops from their territory.

In the background, fighting was raging around what some reports described as the key city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine and Ukrainian forces had struck Tokmak and Vasylivka.

Ukrainian President, President Volodymyr Zelensky, reportedly also said his military had pushed back Russian forces from the outskirts of Bakhmut, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Moscow had ruled out a cease-fire before the Western Christmas on 25 December, the Journal added.