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Zelenskiy says Russia did not keep ceasefire, shelled Bakhmut

SUNDAY, JANUARY 08, 2023

Russia’s defence ministry said on Saturday its forces in Ukraine would maintain a ceasefire it unilaterally declared in honour of Orthodox Christmas until midnight, despite Ukraine rejecting the truce offer.

In its daily briefing, the defence ministry said its troops had only returned artillery fire when fired upon by Ukrainian forces, whom it accused of shelling civilian areas – something Kyiv often accuses Russian forces of.

Ukraine rejected Moscow’s ceasefire offer as a cynical trick designed to give Russian forces the chance to rest and re-arm and said it would continue to try to recapture territory seized by Moscow.

Ukraine’s President Zelenskiy said on Saturday that Russia’s call for a ceasefire had been ‘deceptive,’ adding shells had hit Bakhmut.

Reuters confirmed shellfire echoed around the near-deserted streets of Bakhmut but was not able to ascertain the origin of the shells.

On Friday, Putin ordered a 36-hour ceasefire for Christmas celebrations.

Many Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on Jan. 7, but the Russian Orthodox Church‘s backing for Moscow’s war in Ukraine has angered many Ukrainian Orthodox believers and splintered the worldwide Orthodox Church.

The Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) Epifaniy I. lead Ukraine’s main Orthodox Christmas service on Saturday in a historic Kyiv cathedral in the Pechersk Lavra complex.

Believers gathered in the crowded Uspenskiy Cathedral which until the end of 2022 was leased by an Orthodox branch with ties to Moscow.

Epifaniy I. called upon the believers to condemn war crimes committed by Russia in Ukraine and asked God to help Ukraine win the war.

“Help us to defeat the enemy, who brought grief into our home. Help us to finally drive out the foreign invasion of Ukrainian land. Thanks to the victory of truth, (God) may establish a just and continued peace.”

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), formerly known as the Moscow Patriarchate, were evicted by the government from the Uspenskiy cathedral as their lease of the shrine ended on December 31.

Ukrainian Culture minister Oleksandr Tkachenko announced the handover of the cathedral to the Kyiv-backed Orthodox Church of Ukraine on Thursday (January 5).

Reuters