Vladimir Putin stepped up aggressive attacks on Ukraine on Easter Monday after flouting his own 30-hour ceasefire almost 3,000 times. Russia struck Sumy and Kharkiv border regions with aerial bombs soon after the midnight end of his so-called truce, with explosions also reported in Mykolaiv, Kherson, Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Sumy, Zaporizhzhia and Dnipropetrovsk regions.
This comes as Ukraine is under intense pressure from the US to agree major concessions in a Donald Trump peace package. Volodymyr Zelensky accused Putin of making a mockery of his own ‘truce’ by repeated attacks on Ukraine with assaults, FTP drone incursions and firing on its territory, including with heavy weapons, amounting to 2,839 incidents.
In one, near Kostyantynivka, footage shows a humanitarian excavation car was hit by a Russian drone. The car was first attacked by a drone with a shrapnel charge, then two FPV drones aimed at the people, including a married couple being evacuated.
“Such is the Easter truce,” said humanitarian worker Yevhen Tkachev, who was wounded, according to Radio Liberty.
As new Russian strikes were underway, Putin refused to agree to a Zelensky plan for a 30-day ceasefire, extending the 30-hour supposed pause. This is seen as raising strong doubts that Putin is ready for any peace initiative.
Three weeks ago, he said in words he appears to be sticking to: “Not long ago I said we’d grind them [Ukraine] down — now it looks like we’ll finish them off.”
The Trump peace plan makes clear the US would recognise Crimea – invaded by Putin in 2014 – as Russian, in a major reversal of American policy, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Ukraine would be barred from joining NATO, raising questions over its security in the event of Russia agreeing a peace deal, which currently seems unlikely.
It would designate territory around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant – the largest in Europe and now held by Russia in invaded territory – as neutral, and under US control.
The occupied Ukrainian territories of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson would not be recognised as Russian by the US. But nor would these regions be returned to Kyiv, and would remain under Putin’s military hegemony. The US draft does not propose a cap on Ukrainian military forces, nor ban Western military support for Kyiv.
Nor does it rule out the deployment of European troops in Ukraine – which is likely to face huge Moscow objections. Moscow red lines appear to be the ousting of Zelensky and his government and the so-called “denazification” of Ukraine, seen as putting in place a government obedient to Putin.
Trump said on his Truth Social network: “Hope Russia and Ukraine make a deal this week. Both sides will do business with the United States of America, which is prosperous, and make a fortune.”
This comes after footage appeared of a North Korean 240-mm MLRS M1991 ‘Hurricane’ multiple launch rocket system inside Russia. This appears to confirm supplies by Kim Jong-un to Putin of the weapon with a range of up to 50 miles. It is seen in a workshop ahead of being kitted out with a drone-protection cage for use against Ukraine. Military intelligence in Kyiv says 120 such units with ammunition are being supplied to Putin’s forces.
The Kremlin made clear Putin had refused to extend the ceasefire, with the truce seen in the West as a PR move to impress on Trump that the Kremlin is edging towards peace. “There were no other commands,” said Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Russian defence ministry sources alleged hundreds of breaches of the ceasefire by Ukraine. Kyiv’s response to the US peace draft is expected at a meeting in London this week attended by US, Ukrainian, British and European officials. If any agreement is reached, envoy Steve Witkoff could fly to Moscow for another round of talks with Putin.
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