 "Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov. Reuters File")
The Kremlin on Friday said that Russia reserves the right to withdraw from a US-brokered moratorium on Moscow and Kyiv attacking each other’s energy infrastructure if Ukraine continues its assaults.
On Tuesday, the US announced separate agreements with both Ukraine and Russia to pause their strikes against each other’s energy targets, a potential step towards a full ceasefire and peace talks aimed at ending the three-year conflict.
However, earlier on Friday, both Russia and Ukraine accused each other of attacking a Russian gas metering station located in the western Kursk region, a crucial facility through which Moscow previously pumped gas to Europe via pipeline until the end of last year.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who has previously said the idea that Russia would attack its own energy infrastructure is absurd, suggested Moscow’s patience with the moratorium was running out.
“Of course, the Russian side reserves the right, in the event that the Kyiv regime fails to observe this moratorium, not to observe it either,” Reuters quoted Peskov as saying.
“It would be illogical for us to comply and every night face attempts to strike at our energy infrastructure facilities,” he added.
For the time being, Peskov said that Russia would continue to honor the moratorium, a deal that Ukraine has accused Moscow of violating.
President Vladimir Putin proposed that Ukraine could be placed under a temporary administration to facilitate new elections aimed at resolving the conflict, a suggestion that Kyiv finds outrageous.
Peskov clarified that Putin had not discussed this idea with US President Donald Trump during prior phone calls, as previously announced by the Kremlin.
He added that Putin brought up the notion due to concerns about the increasing strength of armed nationalist forces in Ukraine.
“No, there have been no discussions on this topic; this is the point of view of the president of the Russian Federation, which is based on irrefutable facts related to the real status quo that we now have in Ukraine,” Peskov said.
With inputs from agencies