Christmas Day war of words between Ukraine and Russia, as peace talks progress

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his Christmas Eve message that many Ukrainians would like to see Russian President Vladimir Putin dead.

This comes a day after Zelensky showed a willingness to remove troops from an area in Donetsk, as long as Russia would as well, and create a “free economic zone.” In other words, a territorial compromise. It raised hopes that an end to the war may be in sight. 

“There are two options: either the war continues, or something will have to be decided regarding all potential economic zones," Zelensky said on Tuesday. “We have significantly brought most of the positions closer together. In principle, all other consensus in this agreement has been found between us and them.”

But in his Christmas Eve broadcast message, he said, “‘May he perish,’ each of us may think to ourselves,” referring to Putin, adding, “But when we turn to God, of course, we ask for something greater.”

“We ask for peace for Ukraine. We fight for it. And we pray for it. And we deserve it, so that every Ukrainian family lives in harmony.”

Russia responded through Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, calling it “uncultured, embittered, and coming from a seemingly unhinged person.” He questioned if “he’s capable of making any rational decisions,” according to The Hill. 

Also on Christmas Eve, Zelensky wrote that it was the “fourth wartime Christmas for the Ukrainian people during the full-scale war, the largest in Europe since World War II,” in a post on X.

“Moscow has not only rejected the request to end the killing at least for this Holy Day; instead, Russia launched a massive missile and drone strike against Ukraine’s energy grid, causing power outages, and continues frontline assaults. Regrettably, Russia continues to reject real ceasefire proposals, as it has done throughout the year. Instead, it is clearly seeking ways to prolong the war and continue attacks.”

Peskov added in his Christmas Day response that the Kremlin was considering the peace proposals presented to Moscow after their recent meetings in Miami, Reuters reported.