Fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces continued early Saturday despite an ongoing unilateral ceasefire declared by Russian President Vladimir Putinq on the occasion of the Orthodox Christmas holiday. Moscow and Kiev blame each other for the continued shelling, while Ukraine, the United States and others are dismissing the 36-hour truce, which began at noon on Friday, as a ruse.
The British Ministry of Defence said On Saturday that fighting in Ukraine had continued “at a routine level” while the US Deputy Secretary of Defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia said on Friday that Putin’s call for a pause in hostilities “should be taken with a grain of salt… this is the same man who said he would not invade Ukraine.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday congratulated Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on becoming Speaker of the House, adding that Kyiv “counted on your continued support and continued American assistance to advance our common victory.”
Here’s the latest news about the war and its impact around the world.
4. From our correspondents
The former comedian Zelensky is now hailed as an inspirational leader across much of the world. Here, played by a compact look-alike named Michal Felek Felczak, he’s also the president next door, a figure who’s not above a little toasting. In the play, he spars with a double for Putin sent to taunt him, debates history with the ghost of Rasputin, and takes cover whenever a deafening bombardment rings out.
The play is one of the more powerfully satirical entries in Krakow’s annual Divine Comedy International Theater Festival, a vibrant, nine-day theater marathon in a country that has taken in millions of refugees from neighboring Ukraine during the conflict.
Mariana Alfaro contributed to this report.
