Russia and Ukraine were accused on Sunday of violating a Easter truce announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, said that the Russian forces continued their bombings and assaults along the front line despite the fact that Putin announced the surprise truce.
The 30 -hour truce that begins on Saturday night to mark religious holidays could be the most significant pause in the fight during the three -year conflict.
The Ukraine Air Force did not report any drones or missile attacks during the night.
But Zelensky accused Russia of having maintained his attacks on the front line after the truce began.
The Russian Ministry of Defense, in turn, said it had “repelled” attempt at assaults on Ukraine and accused kyiv of launching hundreds of drones and shells, causing civilian casualties.
“Despite the announcement of the Easter truce, the Ukrainian units at night made attempts to attack” Russia’s positions in the Donetsk region, the ministry added.
A woman and two children were injured by a drone attack in the Belgorod border region of Russia, said Governor, Vyacheslav Gladkov.
The mayor of Gorlovka appointed by Russian in the occupied part of the Donetsk region, Ivan Prikhodko, said two civilians had been injured without giving details.
Zelensky said that Ukraine saw hundreds of attacks and drone throws on Sunday.
“The Ukrainian army is acting and will continue to act to an absolutely mirror image” by Russia, said Zelensky.
The Russian Ministry of Defense insisted that its troops had “strictly observed the high fire.”
Russia launched its large -scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine in February 2022 and now occupies about 20 percent of the country.
‘Less guys will die’
Putin’s order to stop all the fight during the Easter weekend occurred after months of efforts from the president of the United States, Donald Trump, so that Moscow and kyiv agree with a high fire.
On Friday, Washington even threatened to retire from conversations if they were not advanced.
Ukrainian soldiers said AFP They had noticed a pause in the fight.
A commander of the drone unit said that Russia’s activity had “significantly decreased both in the regions of Zaporizhzia and Kharkiv”, the areas devastated by the war in the south and the northeast, where the unit is active.
“Several assaults were recorded, but those were lonely incidents involving small groups,” said the commander AFPtalking about anonymity condition.
“Less guys (soldiers) will die today.”
Russian “Artillery does not work. It is quiet compared to a regular day,” Sergiy wrote, a Junior Lieutenant in Sumy’s border region, he wrote AFP In a message.
“Drones are flying, of course. Those are mostly recognition drones, not the strike.”
Ukrainian troops “are on the defensive,” he said. “If the enemy does not advance, they don’t shoot.”
AFP The journalists standing in a high point of view in eastern Ukraine heard less explosions than usual and did not see smoke on the horizon.
‘Give peace a chance’
Putin announced the truce from 6pm on Saturday until midnight on Sunday in televised comments, saying that it was motivated by “humanitarian reasons.”
While he expected Ukraine to fulfill, Putin said that Russian troops “must be ready to resist possible rapes of the truce and provocations by the enemy.”
Zelensky said that Ukraine would follow his example and proposed to extend the truce 30 days beyond Sunday to “give peace a chance.”
He said Sunday that Russia “has not yet responded to this.”
Putin previously rejected the full and unconditional fire of 30 days proposed.
The previous attempts to celebrate the cessation of high for Easter in April 2022 and Orthodox Christmas in January 2023 were not implemented after both parties could not agree on them.
‘I can’t trust Russia’
In kyiv on Sunday, when Easter bells sounded, people expressed doubts about whether Russia would observe the truce or agreed with Zelensky’s proposal to extend it.
“They have already broken their promise. Unfortunately, we cannot trust Russia today,” said Olga Gracova, 38, who works in marketing.
“Our president has clearly said that if they announce a high 30 -hour fire, we will announce a high 30 -day fire. So let them go for it […] For this terrible war to end, so that our people, our soldiers and the children stop dying, ”said Sergiy Klochko, 30, a railway worker.
But Natalia, a 41 -year -old doctor, said about the 30 -day proposal of Zelensky: “Everything we offer, unfortunately, is still our offers. No one answers them.”
In the streets of Moscow, people said he welcomed a Easter truce, but expressed uncertainty about whether he approached the end of the war.
“We dream, of course, that peace would come in Easter. That comes soon,” said Svetlana, a 34 -year -old housewife.
“I think this horrible thing will end at some point, but not soon,” said Irina Volkova, a 73 -year -old pensioner.
“Everything is not doing well in Ukraine,” he added: “People are dying, our boys are dying.”
