Ukraine and Russia will cease fire for the Orthodox Easter holidays, the warring countries’ leaders said on April 9th, announcing a rare 32-hour halt in fighting.
With talks on ending the four-year-old conflict derailed by the Middle East war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this week that he had made a holiday truce proposal through the United States.
The Kremlin said that “a ceasefire is declared from 16:00 on April 11th until the end of the day on April 12th, 2026, in connection with the approaching Orthodox feast of Easter.”
Hours later, Zelensky responded that “Ukraine has repeatedly stated that we are prepared to take reciprocal measures. We proposed a ceasefire this year during the Easter holidays and will act accordingly.”
“People need an Easter free from threats and real progress toward peace, and Russia has a chance to avoid returning to hostilities after Easter,” he added.
Vladimir Putin has instructed the Russian General Staff “to cease combat operations in all directions for this period,” the Kremlin said, adding that troops were ready to “counter any possible provocations by the enemy.” The statement noted
We assume that the Ukrainian side will follow the example of the Russian Federation.
