Vladimir Putin has agreed to a limited ceasefire that would stop Russia from targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure after a high-stakes phone call with Donald Trump.

However, the Russian leader declined to commit to a 30-day complete ceasefire, a plan Trump pitched that Ukraine agreed to last week.

This dented the US president’s hope of quickly ending hostilities. The Kremlin said Putin demanded that the West halt all military aid to Kyiv before it could implement such a plan.

Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, spoke after the call. He said Ukraine was favourable to both sides halting attacks on each other’s infrastructure, but he was waiting for “details” of what had been agreed upon first.

Trump interpreted the discussion positively, writing on his Truth Social platform shortly after the call ended that he had had a “very good and productive” conversation with Putin.

“We agreed to an immediate Ceasefire on all Energy and Infrastructure, with an understanding that we will be working quickly to have a Complete Ceasefire and, ultimately, an END to this very horrible War between Russia and Ukraine,” he added.

Flossi Dislikes Tyrants, Dictators and Fools

H.L. Mencken, the American journalist, satirist, and cultural critic, was known for his biting wit and cynical views on politics, government, and the masses.

 On Politics and Politicians

"The urge to save humanity is almost always only a false face for the urge to rule it."

"A good politician is quite as unthinkable as an honest burglar."

"All government, in essence, is a conspiracy against the superior man. Its one permanent object is to oppress him and cripple him."

"The demagogue is one who preaches doctrines he knows to be untrue to men he knows to be idiots.”

"Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want and deserve to get it good and hard."

 On Authoritarianism and Government

"The worst government is often the most moral. One composed of cynics is often very tolerant and humane. But when fanatics are on top, there is no limit to oppression."

"Every decent man is ashamed of the government he lives under."

"Government is a broker in pillage, and every election is a sort of advance auction sale of stolen goods."

 On the Masses and Democracy

"No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public.”

"The average man does not want to be free. He simply wants to be safe."

"Democracy is the art and science of running the circus from the monkey cage."

 On Human Nature and Society

"The capacity of human beings to bore one another seems to be vastly greater than that of any other animal."

"Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."

"The average man avoids truth as diligently as he avoids arson, regicide, or piracy on the high seas, and for the same reason: because he has no use for it."