Key developments on March 18:
- Trump-Putin call: Russia agrees to 30-day pause of energy infrastructure strikes
- US announces another round of negotiations in Middle East on war in Ukraine
- Ukrainian forces attempted to enter Belgorod Oblast, repelled by Russian forces, Russia claims
- Ukraine withdraws from one front-line sector in Donetsk Oblast, commander says
- Russia sees US aid halt during Ukraine truce as its 'minimum' goal, Bloomberg reports
Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to a 30-day pause of energy infrastructure strikes during a call with U.S. President Donald Trump, according to a readout of the call issued by the Kremlin on March 18.
"During the conversation, Donald Trump proposed a mutual refusal of the parties to the conflict to strike for 30 days on energy infrastructure facilities," the statement said.
"Vladimir Putin responded positively to this initiative and immediately gave the appropriate command to the Russian military."
Russia has been bombing Ukraine's civilian energy infrastructure since 2022 and has been steadily expanding its air campaigns in recent months, with bombardments by swarms of Shahed drones a nightly occurrence.
Ukraine has recently had some success in counterattacks. On the night of March 10, over 330 Ukrainian drones targeted Moscow. Subsequent strikes have hit Russia's fossil fuel infrastructure.
The Kremlin also said Putin "responded constructively to Donald Trump's idea of implementing a well-known initiative concerning the safety of navigation in the Black Sea."
"It was agreed to begin negotiations to further elaborate specific details of such an agreement," the statement added.
The statement followed a 1.5-hours phone call between Putin and Trump, during which they discussed ending the war in Ukraine and the U.S. proposal for a 30-day ceasefire to allow for further peace talks.
The Kremlin also demanded a complete cessation of foreign military aid and intelligence to Ukraine as a "key condition for avoiding an escalation of the war."
In addition to halting foreign military aid and intelligence, Russia also called for Ukraine to cease the mobilization and rearmament of its military.
Oleg Sukhov
US announces another round of negotiations in Middle East on war in Ukraine
Washington announced on March 18 that another round of talks on the Russian war in Ukraine would "begin immediately" in the Middle East.
The announcement follows a call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, during which they discussed a 30-day ceasefire proposal and steps to end the war.
"This conflict should never have started and should have been ended long ago with sincere and good faith peace efforts," the White House's statement read.
Putin and Trump agreed that the war needs to end with "a lasting peace," and the first steps towards this will be an energy and infrastructure ceasefire and technical negotiations on implementing a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea.
The negotiations on these matters will "begin immediately" in the Middle East, according to the statement.
Putin and Trump also agreed that there is a need for improved bilateral relations between the U.S. and Russia, saying this cooperation has "a huge upside," including "enormous economic deals and geopolitical stability when peace has been achieved."
Trump called the conversation with Putin "a very good and productive" one.
"Many elements of a contract for peace were discussed, including the fact that thousands of soldiers are being killed, and both President Putin and President Zelensky would like to see it end," the U.S. president wrote on Truth Social.
"That process is now in full force and effect, and we will, hopefully, for the sake of humanity, get the job done!" he added.
Trump also supported an idea proposed by Putin to organize US-Russia hockey matches.
"Donald Trump supported Vladimir Putin’s idea to organize hockey matches in the USA and Russia between Russian and American players playing in the NHL and KHL," the Kremlin said in a readout.
Oleg Sukhov
Ukrainian forces attempted to enter Belgorod Oblast, repelled by Russian forces, Russia claims
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed on March 18 that the Ukrainian Armed Forces attempted to enter Russia's Belgorod Oblast but were repelled by the Russian military.
The news of an alleged Ukrainian offensive in Belgorod Oblast surfaced in Russian media just ahead of the phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump.
Andrii Kovalenko, head of Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation, denied the claims.
Ukraine allegedly launched an offensive on Belgorod Oblast to "discredit Trump's peace initiatives," the Russian Defense Ministry claimed.
According to the ministry, Ukraine carried out five assaults toward the settlements of Demidovka and Prilesye.
"All attacks were repulsed by the actions of the state border protection units of the 'North' forces group, artillery fire and the use of FPV (first-person-view) drones. No crossing of the state border of the Russian Federation was allowed," the ministry's statement read.
Ukrainian authorities did not comment on the statement of the Russian Defense Ministry.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims.
Belgorod Oblast borders Ukraine's Sumy, Kharkiv, and Luhansk oblasts and is regularly used by Russia to launch strikes against Ukrainian territory.
Belgorod Oblast authorities have repeatedly accused Ukraine of launching attacks against the region and Belgorod proper throughout the full-scale war.
Recently, multiple clashes have been reported in the region amid Ukraine's ongoing cross-border incursion focused on neighboring Kursk Oblast.
Ukraine withdraws from one front-line sector in Donetsk Oblast, commander says
Ukrainian forces have withdrawn from one front-line sector in Donetsk Oblast to preserve troops and improve defensive operations, Lieutenant General Serhii Naiev, the commander of a tactical group in the region, reported on March 18.
"This allowed us not only to save our soldiers but also to improve our defense. (Russia) is suffering losses, and we can act more effectively," Naiev wrote on Facebook. It remains unclear which section of the front line the commander was referring to.
Naiev, the former commander of Ukraine's Joint Forces, noted that his leadership of the tactical group in Donetsk Oblast has now entered its second month.
The general emphasized that over the past month, coordinated efforts by scouts, drone operators, artillery, mortar units, tanks, and infantry have destroyed more than 30 Russian armored vehicles and taken out 2,000 Russian soldiers.
“This has significantly reduced the number of Russian attacks in our direction,” he said.
According to Interfax Ukraine's undisclosed source, Naiev has been appointed to command the Velyka Novosilka tactical group. The occupied village of Velyka Novosilka lies some 20 kilometers (12 miles) east of the administrative border between the Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk oblasts.
The withdrawal was carried out in February and concerned Ukrainian units in the area of the villages Dachne, Zelenivka, and Andriivka north of Velyka Novosilka, Ukrainska Pravda's undisclosed sources claimed. Kyiv's forces stationed there pulled back to avoid encirclement in the so-called Kurakhove pocket, according to the outlet.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claims. A Ukrainian military spokesperson has declined to comment.
The Ukrainian military reported that Russia has stepped up attacks in the southern Zaporizhzhia Oblast over the past few weeks but denied Russian claims of capturing the village of Stepove.
Throughout the fall of 2024, Russian forces made operational gains in Donetsk Oblast, including areas near Toretsk and Chasiv Yar. Fighting remains intense in the eastern region, and Russian troops continue to advance, albeit slowly, this year.
Russia sees US aid halt during Ukraine truce as its 'minimum' goal, Bloomberg reports
The Kremlin wants all Western arms supplies to Ukraine to stop during a proposed truce but prioritizes a pause on U.S. arms as its "minimum aim," Bloomberg reported on March 18, citing two undisclosed sources in Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on March 13 that Moscow is open to a 30-day ceasefire, agreed upon by the U.S. and Ukraine, but only if Kyiv stops receiving foreign arms and conscripting and training its forces.
These conditions have raised concerns that Ukraine would be left vulnerable to renewed Russian offensives as no such limitations are being proposed in regard to Russia's Armed Forces.
Bloomberg's sources confirmed that the halt on Western arms supplies — or at the very least, U.S. assistance — remains as Putin's condition.
Putin is scheduled to call with U.S. President Donald Trump later on March 18 between 4 and 6 p.m. Moscow time, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed. The two leaders are expected to discuss the proposed ceasefire plan.
The U.S. temporarily halted military supplies for Ukraine earlier this month before restarting it after Kyiv agreed to the truce plan during talks in Jeddah on March 11.
The ongoing supplies are covered by the presidential drawdown authority (PDA) packages approved by former President Joe Biden, who made the U.S. into Ukraine's leading military donor.
Trump has not approved any new packages and has made it clear he does not seek a prolonged U.S. engagement in Ukraine.
The EU reportedly has no intention of halting military aid to Ukraine during the proposed truce. European countries are seeking ways to bolster support for Kyiv as continued backing from the U.S. grows increasingly uncertain.
Note from the author:
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