UPD: Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha suggested not waiting until May 8 and to cease fire "right now." "If Russia truly wants peace, it must immediately cease fire. If the fire can be stopped now and from any date for 30 days - then it is real, not just for show. Ukraine is ready to support a long-term, durable, and complete ceasefire. And this is what we constantly propose, at least for 30 days," he stated.
U.S. President Donald Trump wants to achieve a permanent ceasefire to end Russia's war in Ukraine, White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt said on Monday.
Vladimir Putin announced a three-day truce on the days of the 80th anniversary of Victory, the Kremlin website reported. It will last from midnight on May 7 to May 8 until midnight on May 10 to May 11. The Kremlin urged the Ukrainian side to "follow this example" and promised an "adequate and effective response" in case of violations of the ceasefire regime.
"In case of violations of the truce by the Ukrainian side, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation will provide an adequate and effective response. The Russian side once again declares its readiness for peace negotiations without preconditions, aimed at eliminating the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis, and constructive interaction with international partners," the statement said.
Head of the Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council Andriy Kovalenko called this statement "manipulation."
"Why not a full and comprehensive ceasefire? Anything that is not a comprehensive ceasefire is Russian manipulation for informational and military purposes," Kovalenko emphasized. According to him, the Russian authorities, with the help of such a proposal, want to hide their intentions to continue the war against Ukraine. He also reminded that it was Russia that did not agree to extend the "Easter" truce for 30 days.
Before this, hostilities on the line of contact were stopped from April 19 to 21 — for the celebration of Easter. As now, Putin also explained this by "humanitarian considerations." At the same time, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russia itself violated it about three thousand times. Russia also accused Ukraine of violating the "silence regime" all three days of the truce.