Ukrainian President Accuses Russia of Ceasefire Deception During Easter
KYIV: In a statement made on April 20, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed grave concerns regarding the authenticity of the ceasefire that Russian President Vladimir Putin announced just hours before the Orthodox Easter celebrations. Zelenskyy claimed that Russian forces were pretending to comply with the ceasefire, continuing their offensive maneuvers and seeking to inflict losses on Ukrainian forces despite the holiday truce.
Putin's ceasefire declaration, which ordered a temporary halt to military activities along the front lines until midnight Moscow time on Sunday, was made shortly before he attended an Easter service. This announcement was perceived as a strategic move in light of a recent warning from the United States, which stated that it might withdraw from peace negotiations if both Russia and Ukraine did not demonstrate genuine commitment to the process.
In a detailed social media post, Zelenskyy remarked, In general, as of Easter morning, we can say that the Russian army is trying to create a general impression of a ceasefire, but in some places it does not abandon individual attempts to advance and inflict losses on Ukraine. He emphasized that the Ukrainian military had recorded hundreds of shelling incidents on the evening prior to Easter, showcasing the ongoing aggression from the Russian side.
On Easter Sunday morning, Ukrainian forces reported a staggering 59 instances of shelling and five separate assault attempts along the front lines, indicating that hostilities were far from over. While Ukraine's military acknowledged a slight decrease in frontline activity, they cautioned that fighting had not ceased altogether. Viktor Trehubov, a spokesperson for Ukraine's eastern front, conveyed his skepticism, stating, It is decreasing, but it hasn't disappeared. To be honest, we didn't hold out much hope that this would actually happen.
In the Russian-held region of Donetsk, several explosions were reported early Sunday morning, further corroborating Ukraine's claims of ongoing hostilities. However, independent verification of battlefield reports by Reuters remains unattainable at this time.
