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Suspension of kinetic activity, prison swap: Inside the 3-day ceasefire between Russia, Ukraine announced by Trump
US President Donald Trump said on Friday that Russia and Ukraine would observe a three-day ceasefire in the ongoing war from May 9 to May 11.
US President Donald Trump said on Friday that Russia and Ukraine would observe a three-day ceasefire in the ongoing war from May 9 to May 11.
Trump said after a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on April 29 that work was underway on a temporary ceasefire. Last year, Putin had declared a similar three-day truce, though it was not coordinated with Kyiv.
Earlier, Russia had announced a unilateral two-day ceasefire for Saturday to mark the country’s May 9 Victory Day celebrations linked to World War II. Ukraine had earlier said it had also proposed a truce, but claimed Moscow ignored the offer.
Inside the 3-day Russia-Ukraine ceasefire
On Truth Social, Trump said the ceasefire covering Saturday, Sunday and Monday could hopefully become “the beginning of the end of a very long, deadly, and hard fought War.”
He said the agreement would involve a suspension of all kinetic activity, along with an exchange of 1,000 prisoners from each side.
He wrote, “This Ceasefire will include a suspension of all kinetic activity, and also a prison swap of 1,000 prisoners from each Country. This request was made directly by me, and I very much appreciate its agreement by President Vladimir Putin and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy."
Trump also said discussions aimed at ending the conflict were still going on “and we are getting closer and closer every day.”
Notably, Ukraine’s chief negotiator, Rustem Umerov, had reached Miami for a round of talks with US officials, as negotiations to end Russia’s war in Ukraine have remained stalled over the past few months, officials were quoted as saying by news agency Reuters.
The US-backed discussions remain stuck over Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region. Moscow wants Kyiv to withdraw troops from areas of the region that Russian forces have not managed to seize during the four-year full-scale invasion. Ukraine has maintained that it will not give up territory currently under its control.
Fighting continues
Russia and Ukraine exchanged attacks on Friday before Trump’s announcement.
Ukraine had earlier refused to say it would follow Moscow’s call for a temporary pause in strikes, accusing Putin of wanting a break in fighting only to hold Saturday’s military parade at Red Square.
Kyiv said Russia had dismissed Ukraine’s proposal earlier this week to stop fighting for a short period. Zelensky had described the offer as a way to test whether the Kremlin was genuinely willing to allow even a brief pause in the four-year war.
Russia has warned of a large-scale strike on central Kyiv if Ukraine disrupted the Victory Day parade. Moscow has also repeatedly advised foreign diplomats to leave the Ukrainian capital beforehand.
With inputs from agencies
