Trump on 'energy truce': Putin kept his word
President Donald Trump said Russian dictator Vladimir Putin kept his word on the terms of an “energy truce,” telling reporters at the White House that the pause in strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure lasted from Sunday, January 25, to Sunday, February 1, after which Russia launched a heavy attack overnight into February 3.
“It was Sunday to Sunday and it opened up and he hit him hard last night. No, he kept his word on that. It was a lot. You know, one week. We'll take anything because it's really, really cold over there,” he said.
When asked if he was disappointed the pause did not last longer, Trump replied, “I want him to end the war.”
The notion of an “energy truce” first appeared in Russian military bloggers’ channels on January 29, with no immediate official confirmation from either Ukraine or Russia. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment at the time.
That same day, Trump announced that Putin had agreed to his personal request to halt strikes on Ukraine for one week.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy responded that Kyiv was not part of any direct agreement but was prepared to reciprocate if Russia complied.
"If Russia heard the signal from the American side the same way we did, then we will surely see some results and be able to evaluate them. There are no secrets here. There was no direct dialogue or direct agreements on this between us and Russia," Zelenskyy said.
It seems that Ukraine was counting on a week of "energy truce" from January 29 to February 5, when the next round of peace talks in Abu Dhabi is scheduled to end. And not from January 25, as Trump now claims.
Overnight into February 3, Russian troops launched a combined strike on Ukraine, which Zelensky called a violation of the ceasefire. He also said that Ukraine was awaiting a response from the United States.
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