NEW DELHI: Amid growing frustration in Washington over stalled peace efforts, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a surprise Easter truce in the conflict in Ukraine.
The truce will pause “all hostilities” from 6 pm Moscow time on Saturday (11 am Eastern Time) until midnight on Monday (5 pm ET Sunday).
The announcement came on the same day as Russia, Ukraine swapped hundreds of prisoners in the war’s largest exchange. Russia said 246 Russian service members were returned from territory controlled by Kyiv, and that ‘as a gesture of goodwill’ 31 wounded Ukrainian prisoners of war were transferred in exchange for 15 wounded Russian soldiers.
Putin said he expects Ukraine to reciprocate: “We assume that the Ukrainian side will follow our example.”
Ukraine has been wary of short-term truces, having previously rejected a January 2023 ceasefire. Zelenskyy wrote on X that the truce plan came as air raid alerts were announced in Ukraine due to drone attacks.
The ceasefire announcement follows fresh Russian claims of territorial gains, including the capture of another settlement near the Kursk border region. President Putin suggested the truce would serve as a test of Ukraine’s sincerity about wanting peace. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had signalled growing impatience with the peace process.
On Friday, he warned that the United States is prepared to “move on” from its role in brokering peace talks unless there are tangible signs of progress in the coming days. “We can’t keep chasing a breakthrough that isn’t coming,” he said.
President Donald Trump, too, weighed in, saying that the negotiations between Russia and Ukraine are “coming to a head.”
Ukraine had last month agreed to Trump’s proposal for a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire, only for Vladimir Putin to reject it.