Mr. Putin’s directive to his troops was announced days after Moscow suffered its deadliest reported loss of the invasion, and following 11 months of brutal combat.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on January 5 ordered a 36-hour ceasefire in Ukraine to run during Orthodox Christmas, a move that war-battered Kyiv swiftly branded as “hypocrisy”.

Mr. Putin’s directive to his troops was announced days after Moscow suffered its deadliest reported loss of the invasion, and following 11 months of brutal combat.

Both nations celebrate Orthodox Christmas and the Russian leader’s order came after a ceasefire was urged by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russia’s spiritual leader Patriarch Kirill, a staunch Putin supporter.

Taking into account the appeal of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill, I instruct the defence minister of the Russian Federation to introduce… a ceasefire along the entire line of contact between the sides in Ukraine,” said a Kremlin statement.