Russia Claims Ukraine Would Use 'Olympic Truce' to Regroup

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Facts

• Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has responded skeptically to French Pres. Emmanuel Macron's call for a break in global conflicts during this year's summer Olympics, which is being hosted by Paris.¹
• Macron on Tuesday said France would do everything possible to observe a cease-fire in Ukraine, Gaza, and Sudan between Jul. 26 and Aug. 11, including engaging the Chinese Pres. Xi Jinping in the effort.²
• While Russia has yet to respond to Macron's proposal, Peskov, without citing specific incidents, said, 'as a rule, the Kyiv regime uses such ideas and such initiatives to try to regroup, to try to rearm.'³
• Since Russia captured the town of Avdiivka in February, Ukraine has reportedly been running out of ammunition, with Pres. Volodymyr Zelenskyy warning Moscow might launch a significant offensive in the late spring or summer.¹
• Last year, China, which has reportedly boosted trade ties with Moscow post its invasion of Ukraine, proposed a peace initiative that included basic principles but no specific terms to end the more than two-year-long war.⁴

Sources: ¹Reuters.com, ²Ukrainska Pravda, ³The Economic Times and ⁴Firstpost.

Narratives

• Anti-Russia narrative, as provided by Visit Ukraine. Holding a cease-fire during the Olympic Games is a tradition dating back to the ancient Greeks and should be honored around the world. Macron isn't just calling for Russia and Ukraine to lay down their weapons for two weeks, but for all warring factions to take a peaceful break from the cycle of violence.
• Pro-Russia narrative, as provided by RT International. Ukraine has typically used cease-fire suggestions to rearm itself, so Russia must exercise caution and consider its own national security interests. Moscow has also been the one calling for actual peace agreements to end the war, but it refuses to take a temporary pause just because Kyiv is running out of bullets.

Predictions