{"id":980,"date":"2025-03-12T09:50:02","date_gmt":"2025-03-12T10:50:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/?p=980"},"modified":"2025-03-18T23:07:57","modified_gmt":"2025-03-18T23:07:57","slug":"why-putin-faces-moment-of-truth-over-ukraines-ceasefire-proposal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/12\/why-putin-faces-moment-of-truth-over-ukraines-ceasefire-proposal\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Putin faces \u2018moment of truth\u2019 over Ukraine\u2019s ceasefire proposal"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Firefighters battle flames following a strike in Odesa on Tuesday as the Ukrainian president agreed to a 30-day ceasefire (Picture: Reuters)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This is the \u2018moment of truth\u2019 for Russia<\/a> \u2013 but also for US<\/a> president Donald Trump<\/a> \u2013 amid a proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Vladimir Putin<\/a> is weighing his response to the deal, which would pause all attacks at sea and in the air, something which has been welcomed by most European leaders<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The decision, experts say, could mark a critical turning point in the war and will test both the Kremlin\u2019s resolve and Trump\u2019s stance on the conflict<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Malcolm Chalmers, deputy director-general of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), told Metro<\/strong> that Russia would want to understand first what would happen if it does reject the ceasefire outright<\/a>.<\/p>\n

He described this as the \u2018moment of truth\u2019 for Russia and Trump, adding: Would the US then double down on its support for Ukraine and increased sanctions? We just don\u2019t know.\u2019<\/p>\n

If accepted unconditionally, an extended ceasefire would amount to a strategic defeat for Putin, Chalmers warned. <\/p>\n

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An elderly man stands in a courtyard of his house while smoke rises from a fire following a strike on the outskirts of Odesa on March 11, 2025 (Picture: Reuters)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It would solidify Ukraine\u2019s independence, accelerate Western aid, and also reinforce the ties with Europe.<\/p>\n

These are all outcomes that would contradict Putin\u2019s imperialistic goals in the start of the full-scale invasion.<\/p>\n

Chalmers explained: \u2018As soon as the guns stop, Ukraine\u2019s airports will reopen, foreign assistance will flow in at greater speed, and there will be a strong sense of success across Ukraine. <\/p>\n

\u2018This is not what Russia has fought three years of bloody war to achieve. It will not be easy for Putin to explain to his followers why he has wasted so much blood and treasure.\u2019<\/p>\n

This comes as the Kremlin finally responded for the first time to news that Ukraine has backed a US-proposed ceasefire.<\/p>\n

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Ukrainian soldiers of the 117th Brigade fire D-30 artillery in the direction of Pokrovsk, Ukraine on February 17, 2025 (Picture: Andolu)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It warned that Russia does not want to get ahead of itself and that it first needs to receive information from the US.<\/p>\n

Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said he did not rule out the possibility of a phone call between presidents Putin and Trump, which he said could be organised very quickly if needed.<\/p>\n

This cautious response aligns with Chalmers\u2019 assessment that Russia will seek clarification and conditions before deciding.<\/p>\n

He said: \u2018To avoid making an outright rejection, Putin may press instead for clarification and conditions \u2013 especially ones that Ukraine will find it hard to accept. <\/p>\n

\u2018Russia could insist on there being no Nato or European forces on Ukrainian soil while the ceasefire lasts, and on Ukrainian demilitarisation. <\/p>\n

\u2018And the US may accept some of these conditions. We should know a lot more in the coming days.\u2019<\/p>\n

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk<\/a>.<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

For more stories like this, <\/strong>check our news page<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Firefighters battle flames following a strike in Odesa on Tuesday as the Ukrainian president agreed to a 30-day ceasefire (Picture: Reuters) This is the \u2018moment of truth\u2019 for Russia \u2013 but also for US president Donald Trump \u2013 amid a proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine. Vladimir Putin is weighing his response to the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":300,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-980","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-russia-ukraine"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/980","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=980"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/980\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":985,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/980\/revisions\/985"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=980"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=980"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/softnary.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=980"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}