United States President Donald Trump has announced a three-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine beginning Saturday, expressing hope that the temporary truce could pave the way for a permanent end to the war.
Trump disclosed the development on his Truth Social platform, saying both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had agreed to the arrangement.
“I am pleased to announce that there will be a THREE DAY CEASEFIRE (May 9th, 10th, and 11th) in the War between Russia and Ukraine,” Trump wrote.
“This request was made directly by me, and I very much appreciate its agreement by President Vladimir Putin and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.”
He added, “Hopefully, it is the beginning of the end of a very long, deadly, and hard fought war.”
The ceasefire announcement came after Russia earlier declared a two-day unilateral truce to coincide with celebrations marking Victory Day, commemorating the Soviet Union’s victory in World War II.
The temporary halt in hostilities is also expected to include a prisoner exchange involving 1,000 captives from each side.
Despite the announcement, both countries reportedly exchanged attacks on Friday before the ceasefire was due to take effect.
Ukraine had earlier criticised Moscow’s proposed truce, accusing Russia of seeking a pause mainly to ensure smooth conduct of the annual military parade at Red Square in Moscow.
Kyiv also maintained that a previous Ukrainian proposal for a short-term ceasefire had been ignored by the Kremlin.
President Zelensky said Russia had not reduced the intensity of military operations despite the truce declaration.
“Despite the declared ceasefire, the enemy has not reduced the intensity of assault operations,” he said, adding that Ukrainian forces were responding accordingly.
Russia, on its part, said it had intercepted more than 400 Ukrainian drones since midnight, including around 100 reportedly targeting Moscow.
The conflict, which began after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians, with large parts of Ukraine devastated by the fighting.
Efforts by the United States and other international actors to broker peace have so far produced limited progress.
(AFP)
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