Vladimir Putin
Petro Porosehenko, the president of Ukraine revealed on Wednesday that he had reached a ceasefire agreement with the Russian president Vladimir Putin. Ironically however, Russian ambassadors stated that such an agreement cannot be possible because they asserted that Russia was never involved in the conflict taking place within Ukraine.
A spokesperson from Putin’s administration told CNN that such a truce should not have been possible. "There is no confirmation of a ceasefire because Putin cannot agree (to) a ceasefire because he is not party to the conflict" the spokesman said. Putin however explained to BBC that he believes that Russia will be able to reach a ceasefire with Ukraine by this Friday.
President Obama also expressed some skepticism regarding the ceasefire agreement that one party denies the existence of. He noted during his visit to Estonia that there have been previous attempts to stop the violence in Ukraine but have all failed because either Russia did not support the idea or because they denied their involvement in the conflict.
"Having said that, if in fact Russia is prepared to stop financing, arming, training and in many cases joining with Russian troops' activities in Ukraine, and is serious about a political settlement, that is something that we all hope for," Obama said in s statement during his trip to Estonia.
Russia is still denying its involvement in the Ukrainian civil war, but many Ukrainian military officers and leaders have asserted that Russia has been supplying the pro-Russia rebels with tanks, carriers and even warplanes to resist the Ukrainian government. A leader of the rebel forces has stated through Russian TV that there are around 2,000 to 3,000 Russian citizens who have entered Ukraine and are fighting alongside the rebels.
Meanwhile, E.U. has agreed to strengthen its economic sanctions against Russia until it stops its intervention in Ukraine and the U.S. government has expressed agreement with their new foreign policy.
