The Christmas ceasefire in Ukraine announced yesterday by Putin officially entered into force at 10 am Italian time (midday in Moscow). It will last until 10 pm Italian tomorrow, when midnight will start in Kiev.
But it has already been violated, according to the two sides of the conflict who accuse each other .
Deputy head of the Ukrainian bureau Kyrylo Tymoshenko reported on Russian attacks in Kramatorsk : "The city was attacked twice with rockets, a residential building was also hit."
The spokesman of the Russian Defense Ministry, Igor Konashenkov, said instead that the troops of Moscow respect the ceasefire while the Ukrainians "continue the artillery bombardment on populated areas and on the positions of the Russian forces" .
Ukraine, Moscow specified, attacked the Donetsk area with artillery fire three times immediately after the truce came into force. Eight other attacks occurred in the Zaporizhzhia region instead.
The ceasefire declared yesterday by Putin is unilateral, the Russian president has launched an appeal to Ukraine to accept the suspension of hostilities. But Kiev replied that there will be a truce "only when the Russians withdraw" .
US State Department spokesman Ned Price spoke of a "cynical" proposal . "Our concern - he said - is that the Russians try to take advantage of any temporary lull in the fighting to rest, recover, regroup and, eventually, re-attack".
(Unioneonline/L)
