INDEPENDENT
NewsWorldEurope
Ukraine-Russia war latest: Putin starts 30-hour ‘Easter truce’ but Kyiv warns he ‘cannot be trusted’
Zelensky responds by saying Russian drones in Ukrainian skies show Moscow's true attitude towards Easter
Tara Cobham - Jabed Ahmed
Saturday 19 April 2025 17:49 BST
149
Comments
Vladimir Putin has declared a unilateral Easter ceasefire in Ukraine, ordering his forces to pause fighting from 6pm today (4pm UK time) until Monday.
The Russian president said he assumes the Ukrainian side will follow its example and stop hostilities, and added that Russia’s armed forces will be ready to repel possible “violations and provocations” by Ukraine.
But shortly after the announcement, around an hour before it was due to take effect, air raid sirens rang out in Kyiv.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed the proposal as "yet another attempt by Putin to play with human lives". Some 45 minutes before the truce was meant to start, Ukrainian planes were repelling Russian air strikes, Zelensky said in a post on X.
"Shahed drones in our skies reveal Putin's true attitude toward Easter and toward human life," he said.
Ukraine’s foreign minister echoed Mr Zelensky’s comments, adding that the Russian president “cannot be trusted”.
"Russia can agree at any time to the proposal for a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire, which has been on the table since March,” Minister Andrii Sybiha said on X.
“We know his words cannot be trusted and we will look at actions, not words."
Putin's Easter truce in Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared a unilateral Easter ceasefire in Ukraine, ordering his forces to end hostilities at 6pm on Saturday until the end of Sunday.
However, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian air defence units were repelling an attack by Russian drones on Saturday. He said this showed Moscow's true attitude to Easter and the lives of people.
"Based on humanitarian considerations ... the Russian side announces an Easter truce. I order a stop to all military activities for this period," Putin told his military chief, Valery Gerasimov, at a meeting in the Kremlin.
"We assume that Ukraine will follow our example. At the same time, our troops should be prepared to repel possible violations of the truce and provocations by the enemy, any aggressive actions," Putin added.
The Russian Defence Ministry said it had given instructions on the ceasefire to all group commanders in the area of the "special military operation", the Kremlin's term for the war.
Russian troops will adhere to the ceasefire provided it is "mutually respected" by Ukraine, the ministry said in a statement.
(POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Close
Jabed Ahmed19 April 2025 15:15
No comments:
Post a Comment