Kremlin ‘has nothing to say yet about the proposed energy ceasefire’ following Trump truce announcement

The Kremlin on Monday rejected a 60-day ceasefire proposed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to allow Ukraine to hold presidential elections, saying it wants an overall peace deal instead. The response came a day after Zelenskyy floated the idea in an interview.

Zelenskyy made the pitch on ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday. “Please tell Putin, give us two months, 60 days of total ceasefire, 60 days, and we will organize elections,” he said.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday that Russia wanted a long-term peace deal rather than a temporary ceasefire. “In the Kremlin, both President Putin and officials at other levels have repeatedly stated that we do not want a ceasefire,” Peskov said. “We want long-term peace and are prepared to do everything possible to achieve it.”

In his remarks, Zelenskyy tied the pause directly to organizing elections, a step Moscow has long demanded. Russia has long pressed Ukraine to hold elections and says that its failure to do so makes Zelenskyy an illegitimate leader. Elections in wartime are prohibited by Ukrainian law.

Separately, the Kremlin said contacts were ongoing about a possible energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, which was announced by US President Donald Trump. Peskov declined to comment on whether the ceasefire would apply only to oil refineries and said further information would be revealed in due course.

The Kremlin’s remarks on both issues came Monday. It rejected the 60-day pause Zelenskyy proposed for elections, while saying contacts continued on the energy ceasefire that Trump announced.