The Kremlin on Wednesday declined to specify when a 30-day moratorium on strikes on Ukraine's energy infrastructure would end -- or whether it would be extended -- just hours before the agreement was set to expire.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on March 18 he had ordered his army to halt attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure for 30 days, though Kyiv has accused Moscow of firing at those types of sites on multiple occasions since.
"We'll keep you informed. I am not yet ready to tell you what decision has been made," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters when asked about the exact time Putin's order was due to expire.
Kyiv, which says its own order to stop such attacks began on March 25, said it was too early to tell whether it would be extended, but it was generally in favor of prolonging it.
"Of course they need to continue, but we can see, unfortunately, that Russia is violating them," Ukraine's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geogriy Tykhy told a media briefing, adding that a monitoring mechanism to track violations should be put in place.
Tykhy also reiterated Ukraine's commitment to a full and unconditional ceasefire, something Putin has rejected.
"We think that a full ceasefire is a real way toward peace, not just these partial agreements, which are difficult to monitor," he said.
The Kremlin said Putin issued the halt on strikes after a phone call with US President Donald Trump.
A week later, US officials held separate talks with Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Saudi Arabia, after which the White House said both sides had agreed to "develop measures" to implement an "agreement to ban strikes against energy facilities of Russia and Ukraine."
But no formal agreement was put in place and both have consistently accused each other of continuing to strike energy targets since then.
AFP
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