Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of creating a “general impression” of a ceasefire while continuing to pummel parts of the front line, despite Russian President Vladimir Putin announcing a brief cessation in fighting for Easter.
Putin’s surprise announcement on Saturday, ordering his forces to “stop all military activity” along the front line from 6 p.m. Moscow time on Saturday (11 a.m. ET) until midnight on Monday (5 p.m. Sunday ET) was met with immediate skepticism from Ukraine, although Kyiv agreed to the truce.
Questions were raised over Putin’s motives in calling the brief halt to hostilities, which came soon after the Trump administration threatened to abandon peace efforts without tangible signs of progress.
By Easter Sunday morning, the ceasefire had already been violated multiple times, Zelensky said. Ukraine’s military said that while activity along the front line had decreased, the fighting had not stopped.
A couple walks by flags and portraits of fallen servicemen at a makeshift memorial for the fallen Ukrainian and foreign fighters, at the Independence Square in Kyiv on April 19, 2025, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday announced an Easter truce in the conflict in Ukraine starting this evening and lasting till midnight on April 20, 2025.
Between 6 p.m. local time on Saturday, when the ceasefire went into effect, and midnight, there were 387 instances of shelling and 19 assaults by Russian forces, Zelensky said in a post on X.
“Overall, as of Easter morning we can state that the Russian army is attempting to create the general impression of a ceasefire, while in some areas still continuing isolated attempts to advance and inflict losses on Ukraine,” Zelensky said, citing a report from General Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces.
In Russia’s Kursk region – the scene of a shock Ukrainian incursion last year – Moscow’s forces conducted artillery strikes and used drones, he added.
“Everywhere our warriors are responding as the enemy deserves, based on the specific combat situation. Ukraine will continue to act symmetrically,” Zelensky said.
There does appear at least to be a let-up in the near-daily, deadly aerial attacks on Ukraine. The Ukrainian Air Force said it had not recorded any aerial threats from missiles or drones from Russia since Saturday night, while Russia’s Defense Ministry did not report any drone or missile attacks on Russia overnight.
A woman walks past a mural depicting a soldier with the Russian flag in Simferopol, Crimea, on October 2, 2024.
The Ukrainian leader has called for the ceasefire to be extended to 30 days, in line with a US-led proposal last month. On Sunday morning, he said that the proposal still stands, despite the accusations of repeated violations.
Putin said the ceasefire was on humanitarian grounds but added that his troops would respond to any “provocations.”