Washington, United States. US President Donald Trump announced a three-day ceasefire in the war between Russia and Ukraine from May 9 to May 11, saying it would mark the end of World War II for Russians. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy later confirmed a three-day ceasefire had been arranged with Russia as part of US efforts to negotiate an end to the war.
Ceasefire timeline and terms
Trump said in a Truth Social post that the pause would include a suspension of all kinetic activity and a prison swap of 1,000 prisoners from each country. He said after a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on April 29 that a temporary ceasefire was in the works.
Separate ceasefire announcements
Russia announced a ceasefire for May 8 to 9 to coincide with commemorations of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two and a military parade in Moscow’s Red Square. Putin announced a similar three-day truce last year that was not agreed with Kyiv.
Ukraine announced its own proposal for an open-ended ceasefire that started at midnight on Tuesday (9pm GMT), urging Russia to reciprocate. Moscow and Kyiv have both accused each other of violating ceasefires that each has separately declared.
Peace talks and deadlock over Donetsk
Officials said on Thursday that Ukraine’s top negotiator, Rustem Umerov, had arrived in Miami for a series of meetings with US representatives as peace talks on ending Russia’s war in Ukraine have stalled in recent months.
The US-brokered talks are deadlocked over Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region. Moscow demands Kyiv pull troops back from parts of the region it has failed to capture in its four-year full-scale invasion, while Ukraine says it will not cede land that it controls.
What do you think would be required for a ceasefire to hold beyond May 11?