Mathias Busekist
Claiming a 30-hour pause makes headlines, not peace.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a brief Easter ceasefire in the ongoing war with Ukraine, promising a pause in hostilities from Saturday evening to midnight Monday. The gesture, however, was met with deep skepticism in Kyiv, where officials accused Moscow of continuing attacks even after the truce was announced.
“We assume that the Ukrainian side will follow our example,” Putin said, adding the ceasefire would serve as a test of Kyiv’s sincerity in pursuing peace. But just hours later, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reported continued Russian assaults along the front line.
“Russian assault operations continue, and artillery fire has not stopped,” Zelensky said in a Saturday night address. He urged that the ceasefire be extended from 30 hours to 30 days, a proposal Ukraine has long backed under a U.S.-led peace framework. “Thirty hours make for headlines, but not for confidence. Thirty days could give peace a chance,” he said.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha echoed that sentiment, calling Putin’s gesture insufficient. “Russia can agree at any time to the full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire proposed in March,” he posted on X. “Unfortunately, we have a long history of Putin’s statements not matching his actions.”
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The announcement came just one day after the Trump administration warned it was losing patience with stalled negotiations and hours after Moscow claimed a military gain in the contested Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces have launched surprise offensives.
Despite the ceasefire declaration, Ukraine recorded hundreds of Russian attacks. Between Saturday evening and midnight, President Zelensky said there were 387 shelling incidents and 19 assaults. On Easter Sunday morning alone, Ukraine reported 59 shelling cases and five attacks by Russian units.
Putin marked the occasion by attending an Orthodox Easter service in Moscow alongside Patriarch Kirill, the powerful head of Russia’s Orthodox Church and a vocal supporter of the war. Meanwhile, Zelensky offered a message of hope, telling Ukrainians, “Evil may have its hour, but God will have His day.”
“May the day of peace come. The day of Ukraine. And may it last for centuries,” Zelensky said.
