US President Trump stated that Russia has agreed to implement a 'partial ceasefire' for one week, pausing attacks on Ukrainian cities. Trump said he had requested of Russian President Putin that there be 'no firing on Kyiv or other towns for a week', and Putin has responded positively.
Disclosing relevant arrangements at a cabinet meeting, Trump described this as a 'very good decision' by Putin, and said that the Russian side’s agreement to halt attacks on cities would help ease the current humanitarian crisis. He also pointed out that earlier Russian troops had concentrated on bombing Ukraine’s energy facilities, leaving large numbers of people without power or heat in freezing weather—'they had never experienced such cold.'
US Presidential envoy Whitaker said during a cabinet meeting at the White House on the 29th that security assurance and economic prosperity agreements for Ukraine have basically been completed, and that the US and Ukrainian sides are currently discussing territorial issues. He said the next round of negotiations would take place in about a week.
Ukrainian President Zelensky also announced on the same day that a (Russia-Ukraine) ceasefire on energy infrastructure would take effect from the night of the 29th.
However, Russian officials have yet to formally confirm whether attacks on Kyiv and other major cities will be fully suspended.
The report pointed out that as the ceasefire news was announced, Russian troops have in recent days continued to launch fierce airstrikes on multiple Ukrainian regions, causing at least 10 deaths and dozens of injuries, including children and pregnant women. Among them, an energy facility in the southern port city of Odesa was hit by a drone, causing massive destruction.
On the other hand, latest research shows that after nearly four years of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, military casualties on both sides may approach 2 million. The report estimates that Russian military casualties may be as high as 1.2 million, including approximately 325,000 deaths; Ukrainian forces are estimated to have suffered about 500,000 to 600,000 casualties. The Russian side, however, denies these figures and says official loss data are highly classified.