There are no direct agreements with Moscow on stopping attacks on energy sector – Zelensky

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has emphasised that there are no direct agreements between Kyiv and Moscow on stopping Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy sector, but talks on this issue are ongoing, including in Abu Dhabi. He has also stressed that Ukraine will respond in kind to Russia's actions.

Source: Zelenskyy during a conversation with journalists

Quote: "There has been no direct dialogue and no direct agreements on this matter between us and Russia."

Details: Speaking about the cessation of Russian attacks on the energy sector, the president recalled that this issue was raised in Abu Dhabi.

"Various issues were discussed at the meeting in Abu Dhabi, the most sensitive ones. The American side also spoke to us separately. I do not know whether they spoke to Russia – most likely, they did. The Americans said they want to raise the issue of de-escalation, for both sides to demonstrate certain steps towards the non-use of long-range capabilities in order to create more space for diplomacy," Zelenskyy said.

He reiterated that Ukraine supports any initiatives for de-escalation, and Kyiv has consistently demonstrated this since last year's meetings in Saudi Arabia regarding a ceasefire.

"At that time, we were ready for it. The American side wanted this as well. We then chose the format for such work: to support all genuine de-escalation steps and to demonstrate this consistently – so that no one could accuse us of slowing down the process towards peace or obstructing the initiatives of the United States. However, at that time, Russia's responses to such de-escalation steps were negative. We will see how it unfolds now," the president said.

He added that if Russia continues to attack Ukraine, in particular to destroy its energy infrastructure, Kyiv will respond in kind and also try to strike facilities involved in servicing the Russian military machine.

Background:

• US President Donald Trump said that he had personally asked Russian leader Vladimir Putin to stop strikes on Ukraine for a week because of the freezing cold weather.
• On Thursday 29 January, Russian pro-war social media accounts began spreading information about an order banning attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, which supposedly came into force on 28 January.
• Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in turn, confirmed that the Ukrainian negotiating team had discussed halting strikes on energy infrastructure in Abu Dhabi.
• In Kyiv, as a result of a large-scale Russian attack on 24 January and damage to critical infrastructure, 6,000 buildings (half of the city's housing stock) were left without heating.
• As of 30 January, 378 apartment buildings in the capital remain without heating following a Russian attack on the night of 23-24 January.
• The Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre and the State Emergency Service warned of a gradual drop in temperatures in the final days of January and early February – in the northern regions, nighttime temperatures are forecast to fall to 26-30℃ below freezing.

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