President Vladimir Putin on Monday announced a two-day ceasefire over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that will take effect on May 8 and May 9, which marks the anniversary of Nazi Germany’s surrender and the end of World War II in Europe in 1945.
Russia’s Defense Ministry announced the proposal unilaterally, and also said it trusts the Ukrainian side.
The Defense Ministry said that if Ukraine refused and attacked May 9 commemorations in Moscow over the weekend, Russia would respond with a “massive missile strike” on the “center” of Ukraine’s capital Kiev.
“Despite the capabilities we have available, Russia has previously avoided such actions on humanitarian grounds,” the ministry said in a statement.
“We are warning the civilian population of Kyiv and employees of foreign diplomatic missions to leave the city in time,” it said.
What is the shared significance of May 8 and 9 for Russia and Ukraine?
On May 8, 1945, at 11:01 pm Berlin time, Nazi Germany formally surrendered, ending World War II in Europe.
The timing was specifically chosen to give the former Soviet Union a separate day to celebrate what Russia still calls the “Great Patriotic War”, while the clock had already struck midnight on May 9 in Moscow.
Since Russia’s invasion, Ukraine has moved its day of commemoration from 9 May to 8 May, in line with Western Europe and the US.
As a constituent entity of the Soviet Union, located between Berlin and Moscow, Ukraine suffered heavy losses in World War II. Estimates vary, but they agree that Ukrainians were second only to ethnic Russians in terms of total Soviet deaths in the war.
How did Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky react?
In a reaction on social media, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine had received “no official appeal” from Russia to cease hostilities. He instead suggested a different, earlier start to the ceasefire.
“We believe that human life is incomparably more valuable than any anniversary ‘celebration’. In this regard, we are declaring a ceasefire regime starting at 00:00 on the night of May 5 to 6,” Zelensky said, arguing that there is enough time left, a little more than a day, to arrange for the guns to fall silent.
Zelensky wrote, “We will act in a mirror manner, starting from the specified moment. It is time for Russian leaders to take real steps to end their war, if the Russian Defense Ministry already believes that it cannot hold a parade in Moscow without Ukraine’s goodwill.”
It was difficult to guess, at least from the English language words, whether it was meant to be an open-ended offer that could run through May 8–9 or not.
What did Ukraine say earlier on the ceasefire suggestion?
President Vladimir Putin first raised the idea of truth-telling during his phone call with US President Donald Trump last week.
Ukraine later said it would seek details from Washington about the proposal.
Speaking at a European Political Community summit in Yerevan, Armenia, on Monday, Zelensky said Russia’s low-key plans for the May 9 celebrations showed it was unsafe.
“Russia has announced a May 9 parade in Moscow without military equipment,” he said, pointing to the Defense Ministry’s recent decision to stop typical parades of military hardware through the capital.
Zelensky said, “If this happens, it will be the first time in many years. They cannot buy military equipment – and they are afraid that drones could hover over Red Square. It’s telling. It shows they are no longer strong.”
Edited by: Alex Berry