The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, announced a brief Easter truce in the conflict with Ukraine, although this measure was met with distrust by Kiev, at a key moment in the war and with the talks promoted by the United States at a standstill.
Putin communicated that "all military operations" will be suspended from 6 p.m., Moscow time, on Saturday until midnight on Sunday.
"We hope that Ukraine acts in the same way," he noted, adding that this pause would allow Russia to assess Kiev's true willingness to reach a cessation of hostilities.
Soldados ucranianos.
While Ukraine did not openly reject the offer, Ukrainian government officials made clear their distrust toward Putin, recalling that Moscow has refused to sign the 30-day ceasefire proposal pushed by the United States, which was accepted by Kiev.
"Unfortunately, we have a history of Putin's statements that are not reflected in actions... Russia could accept at any time the proposal for a total and unconditional 30-day truce, which has been on the table since March," expressed the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Andrii Sybiha, on X.
The timing of the announcement also raised doubts: it came a day after the Trump administration showed signs of impatience with the stalemate between Russia and Ukraine, and just hours after the Russian Defense Ministry reported that its forces had managed to dislodge Ukrainian troops from one of their last positions in the Russian region of Kursk, where last year Ukraine had launched a surprise incursion.
Un soldado ruso.
Zelensky's message
Meanwhile, the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, reacted on X following the ceasefire announcement made by Vladimir Putin, calling it "another attempt by Putin to manipulate with human lives." The president's post did not specify whether the Ukrainian government will accept the truce.
Since the start of Russia's large-scale invasion in February 2022, there have been no significant interruptions in the fighting. The unexpected announcement from the Kremlin and the brief duration of the proposal left little room for response from the Ukrainian authorities.
In January 2023, Ukraine rejected a similar ceasefire proposal as, according to Ukrainian authorities, Moscow was trying to buy time to regroup forces or move more troops.
As happened on that occasion, Putin once again proposed a pause in the fighting coinciding with a religious holiday: at that time it was Orthodox Christmas; and now, Easter.
