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A cessation of hostilities in Ukraine ordered by President Vladimir Putin on the eve of Orthodox Christmas took effect on Friday morning. Russia intends to observe the truce for 36 hours, from 12:00 local time on January 6 until midnight on January 7.

Earlier, President Joe Biden voiced skepticism about the Christmas truce offered by Russia The US government’s policies on Ukraine show it is not interested in a peaceful resolution of the conflict, the Russian ambassador to Washington said on Thursday.