Russia and Ukraine blamed each other on Sunday for breaking a one-day Easter ceasefire announced by President Vladimir Putin, with both sides accusing the other of carrying out hundreds of attacks.
Putin, who ordered thousands of Russian troops into Ukraine in February 2022, ordered Russian forces to “stop all military activity” along the front line in the three-year-old war until midnight Moscow time (2100 GMT) on Sunday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia was pretending to observe the Easter ceasefire, but had in fact continued hundreds of artillery attacks on Saturday night, with more assaults on Sunday.
Zelenskiy wrote on the X social media platform that Russia had launched 26 assaults from midnight until midday local time (0900 GMT).
“Either Putin does not have full control over his army, or the situation proves that in Russia, they have no intention of making a genuine move toward ending the war, and are only interested in favourable PR coverage,” Zelenskiy’s post said.
Earlier he said the Russian army “is trying to create a general impression of a ceasefire”, while continuing to inflict losses on Ukraine’s front line.
Russia and Ukraine accuse each other of breaking one-day Easter ceasefire https://t.co/GGU9no03aD pic.twitter.com/Lodsj429mF
— Reuters (@Reuters) April 20, 2025
