The U.S. proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine that Kyiv supported after talks in Saudi Arabia has sparked outrage among Russian pro-war bloggers and military correspondents, who called it “a trap” and an attempt to give Ukraine time to strengthen its military forces.
While the Kremlin said Wednesday it was waiting for Washington to inform it about the details of the proposed ceasefire in Ukraine, pro-war figures voiced their expectation that Russia would reject the deal as Moscow was advancing on the front lines.
“The first point: 30 days is an utterly insignificant period, needed by Ukraine, not Russia, to replenish losses and prepare new defense lines. The second point follows from the first. The Americans will resume military aid to Ukraine, which the Ukrainian Armed Forces will actively use during a ceasefire to strengthen and prepare for new attacks,” the pro-war Telegram channel Archangel of Special Forces said to its audience of more than 1.1 million subscribers.
“And the question: is this something we need against the backdrop of the collapsing Ukrainian front? We think not,” it added.
“Trump is rushing to end the war in Ukraine because his Deep State opponents have regrouped and launched a massive counterattack against him and [Elon] Musk. But he has no clear idea how to do it and is not yet ready to unilaterally withdraw from the war. This was the trap set by the Democrats,” said Russian ultra-nationalist philosopher Alexander Dugin.
“A ceasefire is not a serious option, especially when Ukraine is clearly starting to lose,” he added.
Boris Rozhin, a pro-war blogger who has 866,000 subscribers on Telegram, suggested that during the ceasefire, Ukraine would fake a negotiation process to strengthen its army and wait for U.S. weapons deliveries.
"A classic trap… Then we’ll say we were deceived again," Rozhin said.
On Wednesday, the Russian Defense Ministry said it took back control of five villages previously occupied by Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region. Russian state media and pro-war bloggers also shared videos of Russian troops raising flags in the town of Sudzha, which had been under Kyiv’s control since last August.
“Shove your peace initiatives up your a**. Last year, you were given the conditions for a ceasefire. You responded with an invasion. We got the message,” said war correspondent Alexander Kots, referring to the reports that Ukraine and Russia had been in de-escalation talks before Kyiv launched its Kursk incursion.
“What will a ceasefire give Russia? Nothing. What will 30 days give the Ukrainians? Front line stabilization, especially near Pokrovsk [in the Donetsk region] and in the Kursk region,” wrote Alex Parker Returns, another Z-channel on Telegram with 244,000 subscribers.
The author of the Zhivov Z Telegram channel, Alexei Zhivov, also expressed hope that Russia would not agree to the proposed ceasefire.
"Washington is resuming military support for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, openly reaffirming its involvement in the war against Russia,” Zhivov said.
“Why Russia would need this pause remains unclear. I hope we do not agree to it."
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