Russia Staged ‘Energy Truce’ to Stockpile Missiles, Strike During Coldest Days, Zelensky Says

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia sought to demonstrate tangible steps toward de-escalation ahead of the next round of negotiations, but used the pause to mass more firepower. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia used de-escalation steps proposed by the United States as a tactical pause to stockpile missiles and drones before launching a large-scale strike against Ukraine during the coldest days of winter. According to a Telegram post on Tuesday, Feb. 3, Zelensky said that following talks in Abu Dhabi, the American side proposed refraining from strikes on energy infrastructure and raised the issue of protecting other critical facilities as well. He added that Russia formally adhered only to part of the proposal. While strikes on energy facilities were halted, creating the impression that the agreement was holding, attacks on railways and other infrastructure continued. Russia overnight on Tuesday unleashed more than 450 drones and around 70 missiles on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, injuring at least nine people and cutting power to thousands of buildings as temperatures dropped below -20°C (-4°F). According to Ukraine’s Air Force, air defense neutralized 450 targets, including 38 missiles and 412 drones of various types. Zelensky said the actual strike package was about one and a half times larger than what Russia could have deployed earlier. US President Donald Trump was “unsurprised” to learn that Russia had resumed heavy attacks on Ukraine just hours after he boasted about brokering an energy ceasefire with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump initially announced the truce last Thursday. However, on Friday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov clarified that the ceasefire would only hold until Sunday, just as temperatures were set to plummet once again.