Kyiv (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy stated that the Russian army is making a pretence of an Easter ceasefire declared by President Vladimir Putin, persisting with overnight efforts to impose losses on Ukraine’s front lines.
“Overall, by Easter morning, we can observe that the Russian army is attempting to project a sense of ceasefire, yet in certain areas, it continues individual offensives to inflict losses on Ukraine,” said Zelenskiy.
Are Putin’s ceasefire declarations merely propaganda?
On Saturday, Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a surprising one-day ceasefire in Ukraine in observance of Easter. However, Kyiv reported ongoing artillery fire from Russian forces and instead requested a genuine and prolonged cessation of hostilities. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy pointed out that Russia had dismissed a similar proposal facilitated by U.S. President Donald Trump last month and therefore cannot be relied upon.
The gesture came after the U.S. announced it might end peace talks within days if Moscow and Kyiv did not demonstrate a genuine commitment to negotiations. Putin stated that fighting would cease from 6 p.m. Moscow time (1500 GMT) on Saturday until midnight Sunday.
Putin declared a halt to fighting starting at 6 p.m. Moscow time (1500 GMT) on Saturday and lasting until midnight on Sunday.
“Based on humanitarian considerations … the Russian side announces an Easter truce. I order a stop to all military activities for this period,”
Putin expressed during a televised meeting with Valery Gerasimov, Chief of Russia’s General Staff.
“We believe Ukraine will emulate our approach. Simultaneously, our forces must be ready to counter any potential breaches of the ceasefire and provocations from the enemy, as well as any acts of aggression.”
Was Russia’s Easter truce a genuine peace effort?
On the other hand, Just hours before attending an Orthodox Easter service on Saturday evening, Putin declared a sudden one-day ceasefire, instructing his troops to “stop all military activity” along the front line in the ongoing three-year-old war.
Zelenskiy noted that hundreds of shelling incidents occurred on Saturday evening. By early Sunday, Ukrainian forces had reported 59 shelling incidents and five assault attempts along the front line, according to him.
“Russia must completely adhere to the terms of silence,”
stated Zelenskiy. He emphasised Kyiv’s readiness to prolong the ceasefire for an additional 30 days but warned that if Russia resumed hostilities on Sunday, Ukraine would respond in kind.
“Ukraine will continue to act in a mirrored fashion,”
he asserted.
