Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday called an “Easter truce” in the war on Ukraine, claiming Moscow would stop “all military operations” until Monday in the first break from Russian hostilities since his forces invaded more than three years ago.
The truce will begin at 6 p.m. on Saturday and last through 12 a.m. on Monday, Putin said.
However, air raid alarms were still ringing throughout eastern and central Ukraine as Russia continued to launch strikes with less than 15 minutes to go before the ceasefire was set to begin.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the move “yet another attempt by Putin to play with human lives.”
“At this moment, air raid alerts are spreading across Ukraine,” Zelensky posted to X shortly before 6 p.m. in Ukraine. “At 17:15, Russian attack drones were detected in our skies. Ukrainian air defense and aviation have already begun working to protect us.”
“Shahed drones in our skies reveal Putin’s true attitude toward Easter and toward human life,” he added.
Still, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed Moscow’s Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov ordered “all commanders of groups in” Ukraine to pause all combat operations.
“The ceasefire is being introduced for humanitarian purposes and will be observed by the Russian Joint Group of Troops (Forces), provided that it is mutually observed by the Kyiv regime,” the ministry said.
Kyiv has not directly said whether it would also hold up the truce if Russia does.
However, Ukraine previously agreed to a full cease-fire proposed by the Trump administration more than a month ago should Moscow also sign on.
Russia has so far resisted the efforts, frustrating President Trump, who on Friday threatened to abandon the peace process if an agreement cannot be reached within the coming days.
But critics say it is exceedingly difficult to make a suddenly-declared cease-fire hold.
“I’m skeptical. Putin made this announcement unilaterally at the last minute without giving any time for Ukraine to coordinate with front line troops,” the Atlantic Council’s Alex Plitsas told The Post. “As a result, some will not get the message right away and he will use this as an excuse since he claims this will be a test of Kyiv’s desire (for peace).”
“Kyiv agreed to a cease-fire a month ago. This is an excuse for (Putin) to blame Ukraine in light of President Trump’s recent comments about walking away if parties aren’t committed.”
