United States President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed to halt missile and drone attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities for a week during an extreme cold snap. Strikes had damaged power infrastructure, leaving civilians without heating.
“They’ve never experienced cold like this,” Trump said at the White House cabinet meeting. “I personally asked President Putin not to fire into Kyiv and various towns for a week, and he agreed to do that.”
The Kremlin did not immediately respond to the claim. Despite skepticism from others, Trump expressed trust in Putin to honor his commitment.
Meanwhile, Russian strikes on Ukraine’s power infrastructure have worsened humanitarian conditions as freezing temperatures spread across the country. Ukrainian authorities are struggling to restore damaged services amid forecasts of record-low temperatures, including minus 30 degrees Celsius (minus 22 degrees Fahrenheit).
Ukraine’s state weather agency warned that a renewed threat looms from Russian attacks on energy facilities.
Zelenskiy had earlier cautioned about potential renewed attacks on Ukraine’s power facilities. Trump noted “a lot of progress” in US-brokered talks between Kyiv and Moscow aimed at ending the five-year war, which has now entered its fifth year.
Russian strikes killed six people in central and southern Ukraine on Thursday, according to regional authorities and emergency services.