Russia and Ukraine agree to 32-hour Orthodox Easter ceasefire
Al Jazeera
Moscow and Kyiv signal a short Easter truce as diplomacy stalls and war pressures mount.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has announced a 32-hour ceasefire for Orthodox Easter, with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirming that Ukraine will honour it.
The Kremlin said on Thursday that the pause in fighting will begin at 4pm Moscow time (13:00GMT) on Saturday and run until midnight on Sunday, covering Easter celebrations observed in both countries.
“We proceed on the basis that the Ukrainian side will follow the example of the Russian Federation,” the Kremlin said in a statement.
It added that Defence Minister Andrei Belousov had instructed Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov to halt military operations during the period. Russian forces, however, would remain ready to respond to any violations.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine had already proposed a similar pause and would act in kind.
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