Easter truce falters as Russia, Ukraine trade accusations amid silent but tense frontlines

New Delhi, Apr 20: Despite a 30-hour ceasefire announced for Easter, fighting has continued along the Russia-Ukraine frontline, with both sides accusing each other of violating the temporary truce. The lull in hostilities, declared unilaterally by Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday, was intended to run to midnight in Moscow on Sunday. Less than halfway through the ceasefire period, both Kyiv and Moscow reported renewed attacks.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed that Russian drone operations and shelling had intensified on Sunday morning, calling into question the sincerity of the ceasefire.

He suggested the truce may be little more than a public relations move, stating Ukraine would respond in a “mirror manner” to Russian actions.

Zelensky also urged Moscow to commit to a 30-day ceasefire instead of what he described as a symbolic 30-hour pause. “If Russia is serious about peace, it must agree to more than a holiday gesture,” he said. Kyiv had previously agreed to a broader American-backed proposal for a comprehensive bilateral ceasefire, tabled last month after intensive negotiations hosted in Saudi Arabia. The eight-paragraph proposal, announced in a joint U.S.-Ukraine statement in March, went beyond Zelensky’s earlier calls for limited truces in air and maritime domains.

Moscow, however, declined to endorse the full plan. President Putin rejected the notion of a comprehensive truce but did agree to halt attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. He has insisted that any broader ceasefire would only be possible if Western nations stopped providing Ukraine with military assistance and intelligence support. Meanwhile, Russia’s Ministry of Defence, quoted by state media, accused Ukraine of launching hundreds of drone strikes overnight and into Sunday morning, along with artillery fire targeting Russian positions. For now, the frontline remains tense, marked by mutual accusations, intermittent hostilities, and a fading hope for sustained peace.