April 9 – Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday declared a 32-hour ceasefire to mark Orthodox Easter, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Kyiv would observe the truce.

The temporary halt in fighting, set to cover Easter Sunday celebrations, comes as U.S.-backed attempts to negotiate an end to the four-year conflict remain stalled. The announcement also follows ongoing tensions in other global hotspots, though the ceasefire itself is focused on the war between Russia and Ukraine.

Putin’s move mirrors a similar 30-hour Easter ceasefire he ordered last year, which both Moscow and Kyiv later accused each other of breaching.

The Kremlin stated that the truce would begin at 4 p.m. on Saturday (1300 GMT) and remain in force until midnight (2100 GMT) on Sunday.

“We expect the Ukrainian side to follow the example of the Russian Federation,” the Kremlin said in its statement.

According to the announcement, Defence Minister Andrei Belousov instructed Russia’s top military commander, Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov, to suspend combat operations in all areas for the duration of the ceasefire.

At the same time, Russian forces were ordered to stay prepared to respond to any potential provocations or hostile actions.

Zelenskiy said Ukraine had repeatedly suggested pausing hostilities for the Orthodox Easter holiday.

“Ukraine has consistently said that we are ready for reciprocal steps. We proposed a ceasefire for Easter this year and will act accordingly,” Zelenskiy wrote on Telegram.

He added that civilians deserve to celebrate Easter without danger and expressed hope that Russia would extend the pause beyond the holiday as a step toward genuine peace.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin’s proposal had not been coordinated in advance with the United States and was not connected to any immediate plans to resume trilateral peace negotiations.

Meanwhile, Putin’s special envoy Kirill Dmitriev is in the United States, where he is meeting representatives of President Donald Trump’s administration to discuss prospects for a peace agreement and potential economic cooperation between Washington and Moscow, according to sources familiar with the visit.

In the Orthodox Christian calendar, which is widely observed in both Russia and Ukraine, Easter falls on April 12 this year.

Zelenskiy had advocated for an Easter ceasefire for over a week, stating that instead of agreeing, Moscow had continued aerial strikes on Ukrainian cities. Russian officials had previously responded cautiously to the proposal, saying their priority was a comprehensive, long-term settlement rather than a short pause.

The Ukrainian leader has suggested temporary halts in fighting on several occasions, but Moscow has rejected those overtures.

For the Easter period, Zelenskiy also proposed that both sides refrain from targeting each other’s energy infrastructure, noting that the offer had been conveyed through the United States.