Putin does not need energy truce; he needs to keep Trump on his toes, says Ohryzko

Former Foreign Minister Volodymyr Ohryzko believes that Russia does not need a so-called energy truce. However, under the current circumstances, Putin needs something to make sure that Trump gives all his attention to what the Russians are doing and tells him that Russia is on the offensive.

The diplomat expressed this opinion on Radio NV, according to Ukrinform.

According to Ohryzko, he was surprised that the US president, “instead of putting Putin in his place,” asked the Kremlin leader not to shell Ukrainian cities for a week. According to the diplomat, the leader of a state that can influence the situation not only in Russia “should not act this way.”

“And as for whether Russia will comply [with the energy truce]? Remember how many truces we had during the Minsk agreements? "New Year's," "pre-New Year's," "post-New Year's," "spring," "autumn" — there were all kinds. How long did they last? From a few hours to a maximum of a few days," said the former minister.

According to him, under the current circumstances, Putin needs something to keep Trump on his toes and tell him that Russia is advancing and that there are “two days or two months left for the Ukrainians to surrender.”

“He [Putin] has absolutely no need for this truce. Therefore, even if we imagine that he will not attack another thermal power plant, he will attack another high-rise building. Will that make it easier for us?” Ohryzko noted.

As reported by Ukrinform, US President Donald Trump said that Russian leader Vladimir Putin agreed not to shell Ukrainian cities during extreme cold weather for a week.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said that there were no direct agreements on an energy truce between Ukraine and Russia.