Kremlin Declares End to 30-Day Moratorium on Air Strikes Against Ukraines Energy Infrastructure

A 30-day ceasefire regarding Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure has come to an end, as announced by the Kremlin on Friday. This brief pause was initially declared following discussions between Russian President Vladimir Putin and former U.S. President Donald Trump.

“A month has indeed elapsed,” said Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov during a press briefing. “At this point, there have been no further directives from the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, President Putin.”

Russia declared this moratorium on March 18, marking one of the few tangible results from Trump’s attempts to negotiate a ceasefire in the ongoing conflict that has lasted for three years.

Just a week later, U.S. officials conducted individual meetings with both Russian and Ukrainian representatives in Saudi Arabia, after which the White House indicated that both parties had consented to «develop measures» to enact an agreement aimed at ceasing strikes on each other’s energy facilities.

Nevertheless, a formal agreement was never established, and it remains uncertain when the proposed commitments would come into effect. In recent weeks, both nations have accused one another of attacking energy sites.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky criticized the ceasefire as insincere, asserting that Russia had no real intention of halting its attacks “regardless of Putin’s statements.”

The conclusion of the moratorium has raised alarms that Russia could restart its systematic campaign against Ukraine’s power infrastructure as winter approaches.

Reporting by AFP contributed to this article.