US President Donald Trump announced a three-day ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia starting Saturday, expressing hope that the temporary halt could pave the way for a longer-term resolution to Moscow’s ongoing war.
The move follows Russia’s earlier declaration of a two-day unilateral truce to mark Victory Day on 9 May, commemorating World War II. Ukraine, meanwhile, had offered its own ceasefire, which Moscow reportedly ignored, reports BSS from AFP.
The agreement also includes a mutual exchange of 1,000 prisoners from each side, according to Trump, who has struggled to end the four-year conflict he once vowed to resolve within a day of assuming office last year.
“I am pleased to announce a THREE-DAY CEASEFIRE-May 9, 10, and 11-in the war between Russia and Ukraine,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“This initiative came directly from me, and I greatly appreciate its acceptance by President Vladimir Putin and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy,” he added.
“Hopefully, this marks the beginning of the end of a long, deadly, and hard-fought war.”
Fighting continues despite announcement
On Friday, both sides exchanged attacks ahead of Trump’s announcement. Ukraine had previously dismissed Moscow’s brief truce call, accusing Putin of using it merely to stage his annual military parade on Red Square. Kyiv also said its earlier proposal for a short-term ceasefire had been ignored, describing it as a test of Moscow’s willingness to pause hostilities.
Russia had threatened a large-scale strike on central Kyiv if the parade were disrupted and urged foreign diplomats to leave the Ukrainian capital as a precaution.
On the streets of Kyiv, residents appeared largely unshaken. “Nothing new will happen,” said Vasyl Kobzar, a 40-year-old bank employee. “I’m worried, but it’s become routine, unfortunately.”
Ukrainian officials told AFP that no additional security measures had been issued. One lawmaker, speaking anonymously, commented, “We’re just giving (the Russians) the finger.”
Ukraine’s air force reported that Russia launched 67 drones overnight, the lowest number in nearly a month. Despite the truce, Zelensky said, “The enemy has not reduced the intensity of assault operations,” adding that Ukrainian forces continued to respond.
Russia claimed to have shot down more than 400 Ukrainian drones since midnight, including 100 targeting Moscow, stating its troops were “responding symmetrically.”
In the Russian-occupied Kherson region, a Ukrainian drone attack killed a 41-year-old man and his 15-year-old daughter, according to Moscow-backed authorities. Meanwhile, Zelensky highlighted a successful strike on an oil depot in Russia’s Yaroslavl region, about 200 kilometers northeast of Moscow.
In southern Russia, 13 airports were temporarily closed after a Ukrainian drone hit an air navigation center in Rostov-on-Don, the transport ministry said, later noting that partial flight operations had resumed. Putin convened a security council meeting to address the strike, labeling it a “terrorist act” that endangered civil aviation.
Victory Day parade to proceed without tanks
Ukraine has criticised Russia’s temporary ceasefire as a propaganda move to protect its Victory Day parade, a centerpiece of Putin’s patriotic narrative. Hours before the truce began, Zelensky warned Moscow’s allies against attending the event.
Since the invasion in February 2022, hundreds of thousands of soldiers and tens of thousands of civilians have died on both sides.
Putin has leveraged the memory of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany as a cornerstone of his 25-year rule, using massive parades to reinforce nationalistic sentiment.
This year, however, military hardware will be absent from the parade for the first time in nearly two decades, and only a limited number of foreign dignitaries are expected to attend.
Efforts to negotiate an end to what has become Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II have made little progress and have largely been overshadowed by tensions in Iran.
