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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Pjotr Sauer

Ukraine rejects Putin’s 36-hour ceasefire for Orthodox Christmas

The head of the Russian Orthodox church, Patriarch Kirill, at a meeting of the Russian defence ministry board in Moscow in December.
The head of the Russian Orthodox church, Patriarch Kirill, at a meeting of the Russian defence ministry board in Moscow in December. Photograph: Mikhail Klimentyev/Sputnik/AFP/Getty

Ukraine has rejected an announcement by Vladimir Putin of a 36-hour ceasefire to mark Orthodox Christmas, saying there will be no truce until Russia removes its invading forces from occupied land.

The Kremlin said Putin had ordered his defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, to introduce a temporary ceasefire along the entire line of contact in Ukraine for Orthodox Christmas from midday on Friday to midnight on Saturday.

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