Russia and Ukraine confirmed on Friday that they had agreed to a three-day ceasefire announced by US President Donald Trump, with the truce set to run from May 9 to May 11 amid ongoing diplomatic efforts to end the more than four-year-long war.
Trump, posting on Truth Social, said the ceasefire would include a complete halt to “all kinetic activity” as well as a major prisoner exchange involving 1,000 prisoners from each side.
“This request was made directly by me, and I very much appreciate its agreement by President Vladimir Putin and President Volodymyr Zelenskiy,” Trump wrote. “Hopefully, it is the beginning of the end of a very long, deadly, and hard fought War.”
Trump added that negotiations aimed at ending the conflict were continuing and progress was being made every day.
According to Reuters, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy confirmed the agreement in a Telegram post, saying the ceasefire had been arranged through US-mediated negotiations and stressing that humanitarian issues remained a priority.
“That is why today, within the framework of the negotiation process mediated by the American side, we received Russia’s agreement to conduct a prisoner of war exchange in the format of 1,000 for 1,000,” Zelenskiy said.
In a symbolic gesture, Zelenskiy also issued a tongue-in-cheek decree “allowing” Russia’s May 9 Victory Day parade to proceed, saying Ukrainian weapons would not target Moscow’s Red Square during the commemorations.
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov, speaking on behalf of Russian President Vladimir Putin, confirmed Moscow’s participation in the ceasefire initiative and said the agreement had been reached during telephone discussions with the US administration.
The ceasefire announcement came despite both sides accusing each other earlier of violating separate unilateral truces declared this week.
Putin had earlier announced a two-day ceasefire covering Russia’s Victory Day celebrations marking the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two. Kyiv had dismissed the limited truce as insufficient and instead proposed an indefinite ceasefire beginning earlier, a proposal Moscow did not accept.
Fighting continued overnight, with Russia claiming it downed 264 Ukrainian drones while officials reported attacks on Moscow and the Perm region. Ukraine said it struck a Russian oil refinery in Perm for the second consecutive day and targeted another oil facility in Yaroslavl.
Zelenskiy said Russian forces also continued attacks on Ukrainian positions overnight despite the diplomatic progress.
Russia has warned that any Ukrainian attempt to disrupt the Victory Day parade would trigger a large-scale missile strike on Kyiv. Moscow has reportedly advised diplomats to leave the Ukrainian capital if such an attack occurs.
Victory Day remains Russia’s most significant national holiday, commemorating the Soviet Union’s defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945 after losing an estimated 27 million people in World War Two.
This year’s parade in Moscow, traditionally showcasing tanks and intercontinental ballistic missiles, will reportedly proceed without military hardware on display amid heightened security concerns around Putin.
The war, which began with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, has now stretched beyond four years. Russia currently controls nearly 19.4% of Ukrainian territory, though analysts say Moscow’s advances have slowed considerably in recent months.
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