Ceasefire unrealistic amid Ukraine's continued attacks on Russian energy facilities, says diplomat

MOSCOW, April 18 (Xinhua) -- A ceasefire in Ukraine is currently unrealistic due to the country's continued attacks on Russian energy infrastructure, Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said on Thursday.

"We had an attempt at a limited ceasefire on energy infrastructure facilities, which was not observed by the Ukrainian side. In these circumstances, talking about a ceasefire is simply unrealistic at this stage," Nebenzya was quoted by the TASS news agency as saying.

On March 18, U.S. President Donald Trump put forward a proposal for Russia and Ukraine to mutually refrain from striking energy infrastructure facilities for 30 days. Russian President Vladimir Putin responded positively and instructed the Russian military to follow the proposal. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later indicated that Ukraine would also support the proposal to stop attacks on such facilities.

However, Russia said that from March 18 to April 16, Ukrainian forces launched strikes on energy infrastructure across 15 Russian regions, including Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh and other regions. These attacks involved drones, including FPV variants, and various artillery systems such as HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said earlier that Ukraine has effectively ignored the moratorium since its announcement, and attempts to strike Russian energy facilities have continued unabated. ■