Ukraine and Russia have accused each other of failing to honour a proposed halt on energy infrastructure strikes, despite diplomatic efforts between Washington and Moscow to broker a truce in the three-year war.
The accusations followed a high-stakes call between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, during which Putin reportedly backed a temporary 30-day pause on attacks against Ukraine’s power grid. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also signalled support for the moratorium.
However, within hours of the announcement, Ukraine’s defence ministry reported a fresh overnight assault of Russian missiles and drones, which struck multiple sites across the war-torn country.
“Today Putin effectively rejected the proposal for a full ceasefire,” Zelensky said. The attack killed one person and damaged two hospitals, according to Ukrainian officials.
Ukraine’s railway service said the strikes also hit power infrastructure in the central Dnipropetrovsk region.
Meanwhile, Russia accused Ukraine of violating the proposed truce by launching a “deliberate” drone strike on an oil depot in southern Russia, which Moscow claimed was an attempt to “derail” Trump’s peace efforts.
Zelensky is set to speak with Trump on Wednesday to discuss the outcome of the US leader’s conversation with Putin and the “next steps” in ceasefire negotiations.
However, he warned against making “any concessions” to Russia after Putin demanded an end to Western military aid to Ukraine as a precondition for a full ceasefire.
Despite the renewed violence, Moscow and Kyiv successfully exchanged 372 prisoners on Wednesday, which the Kremlin described as a “goodwill gesture.”
The Trump-Putin call, highly anticipated by world leaders, did not produce an immediate ceasefire, but the Kremlin stated that Putin had instructed his military to observe a temporary halt on energy grid strikes for the next month.
Trump hailed his conversation with Putin as “good and productive,” though his diplomatic overtures to Russia have unsettled NATO allies. European leaders have voiced concern over Washington’s willingness to press Ukraine into territorial concessions in a final settlement.
Trump’s insistence that he has an “understanding” with Putin has fuelled fears that the US may not stand firmly by Ukraine in future negotiations. His approach has already prompted Britain and France to push for a “coalition of the willing” to enforce any ceasefire in Ukraine.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron reiterated their commitment to military aid, with Scholz vowing, “Ukraine can count on us.” However, on the front lines, Ukrainian troops remain deeply sceptical about peace prospects.
Trump acknowledged in an interview with Fox News that securing a full ceasefire would be difficult, admitting that “Russia has the advantage” in the conflict. Since its full-scale invasion in February 2022, Moscow has seized around a fifth of Ukraine’s territory, including Crimea.
While Washington has hinted that Ukraine may need to accept territorial losses in a final deal, Kyiv remains adamant that it will not agree to any truce that allows Russia to regroup and prepare for further aggression.
