The Ministry of Defense confirmed the unilateral ceasefire for Christmas on behalf of the President

The Russian military carried out the order of President Vladimir Putin to cease fire on the occasion of Orthodox Christmas, despite the continued shelling from the Ukrainian side, the press service of the Russian Defense Ministry reports.

“Despite the observance today, January 6, from 12:00 Moscow time, by the Russian group of troops of the ceasefire regime, the Kyiv regime continued shelling settlements and positions of Russian troops,” said Ministry spokesman Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov (quote according to TASS).

Representation of the DPR in the JCCC earlier today reportedthat the Ukrainian military shelled the Petrovsky district of Donetsk from artillery at exactly 12:00 after the start of the silence regime announced by Russia. A total of six shells were fired.

The day before, January 5, Putin instructed introduce a ceasefire for 36 hours from noon on January 6 to the end of January 7 in the zone of the special operation in Ukraine. The head of state noted that a large number of Orthodox Christians live in the areas of hostilities, so he called on the Ukrainian side to also declare a ceasefire.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky rejected the proposal of his Russian counterpart, saying that Moscow, under the pretext of silence in Ukraine, is trying to hide the preparation of a “new wave of aggression.” The acting head of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), Denis Pushilin, in turn, said that the Russian Armed Forces would not ignore the provocations of the Armed Forces of Ukraine during the ceasefire period.