Russia's Putin announces Orthodox Easter ceasefire, Ukraine's Zelenskiy agrees

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative file photo — Ukrainian F-16 fighter jets are seen on Aug. 4, 2024. (REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko)

April 9  -  Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday announced a 32-hour ceasefire over a two-day period for Orthodox Easter and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Kyiv would abide by the measure.

The ceasefire for Orthodox Easter celebrations on Sunday coincides with a pause in U.S.-led efforts to clinch a settlement to the four-year-old conflict amid hostilities in Iran and the broader Middle East.

Putin's announcement was similar to a 30-hour ceasefire he ordered last year. Each side accused the other of violating it.

The Kremlin said the Easter ceasefire would be in effect from Saturday at 4 p.m. (1300 GMT) to midnight (2100 GMT) on Sunday evening.

"We proceed on the basis that the Ukrainian side will follow the example of the Russian Federation," the Kremlin announcement said.

The announcement said Defence Minister Andrei Belousov had issued an order to Russia's top commander, Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov, "to stop for this period military action in all directions".

"Troops are to be ready to eliminate all possible provocations by the enemy as well as any aggressive actions."

Zelenskiy said Ukraine had repeatedly proposed a halt to fighting for Orthodox Easter.

"Ukraine has repeatedly stated that we are ready for reciprocal steps. We proposed a ceasefire during the Easter holiday this year and will act accordingly," Zelenskiy wrote on Telegram.

"People need an Easter without threats and a real move towards peace, and Russia has a chance not to return to attacks even after Easter."

NO RESUMPTION OF THREE-WAY TALKS 

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian state news agency TASS that Putin's ceasefire proposal had not been discussed in advance with the United States. Nor was it linked to any notion of resuming three-way talks on a settlement.

Putin's special envoy Kirill Dmitriev is, meanwhile, now in the U.S. and is meeting members of U.S. President Donald Trump's administration for discussions on a peace deal and U.S.-Russia economic cooperation, sources with knowledge of the visit told Reuters.

According to the calendar of the Orthodox faith, dominant in both Russia and Ukraine, Easter falls this year on April 12.

Zelenskiy had for more than a week proposed an Easter ceasefire and, citing air attacks on Ukrainian cities, said Moscow had chosen to respond instead with drones. Russia had previously reacted coolly to Zelenskiy's proposal, saying it preferred to pursue a long-term settlement.

The Ukrainian president has proposed a halt to fighting on a number of occasions, but has been turned down by Moscow.

For Easter, he called for each side to stop targeting the other’s energy infrastructure, saying he made the offer through the United States.

 (Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Nia Williams and Stephen Coates // REUTERS)