President Volodymyr Zelenskiy accused Russian forces on Sunday of disregarding a declared Easter truce, continuing overnight assaults along the front lines in what he called a hollow gesture of peace.
"While the Russian army attempts to present the illusion of a ceasefire, it persists in localized attacks, seeking to advance and inflict losses on Ukraine," Zelenskiy stated in a social media post.
The remarks came hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced an unexpected one-day pause in hostilities, ordering troops to halt all military operations along the front for Orthodox Easter. Putin made the declaration late Saturday, just before attending a midnight church service.
The move followed a U.S. warning that peace talks could collapse within days unless both Moscow and Kyiv demonstrated genuine commitment to negotiations.
The ceasefire was set to last from 6 p.m. Moscow time (1500 GMT) on Saturday until midnight Sunday. However, Zelenskiy reported hundreds of artillery strikes on Saturday evening alone. By early Sunday, Ukrainian forces had documented 59 shelling incidents and five attempted assaults along the front.
"Russia must fully adhere to the terms of the ceasefire," Zelenskiy insisted.
He reiterated Kyiv’s offer to extend the truce for 30 days but warned that Ukraine would respond in kind to any further aggression.
"If Russia continues fighting today, so will we," he said. "Ukraine will mirror its actions."
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