KYIV, Jan 5 (AFP) - Ukraine has dismissed an offer from Russian President Vladimir Putin for a 36-hour ceasefire over Orthodox Christmas, saying there would be no truce until Russia withdraws its forces from occupied land.

The Kremlin said Putin had ordered a 36-hour ceasefire from midday (10:00 GMT) on Friday after a call for a Christmas truce from Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church.

“Taking into account the appeal of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill, I instruct the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation to introduce a cease-fire regime along the entire line of contact of the parties in Ukraine from 12.00 on January 6, 2023, to 24.00 on January 7, 2023,” Putin said in a statement on Thursday.

“Proceeding from the fact that a large number of citizens professing Orthodoxy live in the areas of hostilities, we call on the Ukrainian side to declare a cease-fire and allow them to attend services on Christmas Eve, as well as on Christmas Day,” Putin said.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that “Russia wants to use truce as cover to stop our advances in Donbas and bring in more equipment”.

A senior Ukrainian official quickly dismissed the proposal and said a ceasefire could only happen if Russia leaves occupied territory in Ukraine.

Presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak wrote on Twitter that Russia “must leave the occupied territories – only then will it have a ‘temporary truce’. Keep hypocrisy to yourself.”

He said that unlike Russia, Ukraine was not attacking foreign territory or killing civilians, only destroying “members of the occupation army on its territory”.

United States President Joe Biden responded to Putin’s ceasefire order by saying it was simply an effort to find breathing room for his war effort.

“He was ready to bomb hospitals and nurseries and churches” on December 25 and on New Year’s Day, Biden said, adding: “I think he’s trying to find some oxygen.”