Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared a brief ceasefire in the war with Ukraine for Easter.
According to CNN, Putin on April 19, 2025, announced an Easter ceasefire, saying that “all hostilities” will halt between 6 p.m. Moscow time on Saturday (11 a.m. ET) and midnight on Monday (5 p.m. Sunday ET).
Putin, speaking to Russian Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov in a televised comment, added that the truce is based on “humanitarian considerations”, and he “assumes” that Ukraine will also follow their example.
The Russian Defence Ministry wrote on Telegram, “The ceasefire regime is being introduced for humanitarian purposes and will be observed by the Russian Joint Group of Troops (Forces), provided that it is mutually observed by the Kyiv regime.”
Hours before the announcement, the ministry revealed that Russian forces have pushed back the Russian troops from one of their last remaining footholds in the Kursk region.
Furthermore, the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reacted to the ceasefire and called it “another attempt by Putin to play with human lives.”
He wrote on X, “At this moment, air raid alerts are spreading across Ukraine. Shahed drones in our skies reveal Putin’s true attitude toward Easter and toward human life.”
Notably, Putin called for the ceasefire after US President Donald Trump threatened that America will “take a pass” on brokering further Russia-Ukraine talks if they will make it difficult to reach a peace deal.
