A temporary Easter ceasefire announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin collapsed within hours over the weekend, as both Russia and Ukraine accused each other of violating the truce and resumed active hostilities along the front line. The Kremlin confirmed Sunday that there would be no extension of the 30-hour pause in fighting, which had begun Saturday evening.
"There were no other commands," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told state news agency TASS when asked whether Putin might extend the ceasefire. The truce, which ended at midnight Moscow time on Sunday, was announced unilaterally by Russia without advance coordination with Ukraine.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Moscow's actions over the weekend demonstrated it was only interested in favorable publicity. "Either Putin does not have full control over his army, or the situation proves that in Russia, they have no intention of making a genuine move toward ending the war," Zelensky posted on X, formerly Twitter. He added, "Russia is the only source of the war and the reason for its prolongation."
According to Zelensky, Russian forces launched 67 attacks between midnight and 8 p.m. Sunday, following hundreds of artillery strikes on Saturday night. He cited 46 assault actions and 901 total attacks, including 448 involving heavy weapons and more than 400 drone launches. "Ukraine will continue to act symmetrically," Zelensky said.
Russia's Ministry of Defense accused Ukraine of violating the ceasefire more than 1,000 times, claiming that Ukrainian forces carried out 444 artillery attacks and launched over 900 drones, including strikes on the occupied Crimean peninsula and Russia's Bryansk, Kursk, and Belgorod regions. "As a result, there are deaths and injuries among the civilian population, as well as damage to civilian facilities," the ministry stated.
The temporary truce, announced without warning, coincided with Orthodox and Western Easter falling on the same day this year. While Ukrainian officials confirmed some reduction in hostilities overnight, by midday Sunday, the pace of fighting had escalated again.
A commander from Ukraine's 93rd Kholodnyi Yar brigade, identified only as Dmytro, said, "Shelling continued-we can see it in the news-for example, in Kherson. There is no indication of a ceasefire." Another soldier from the same unit, Serhii, added, "I think it is blatant lie as it always was."
The Ukrainian military reported that Russia had used the brief lull to reposition equipment, including clearing a previously damaged river crossing near Lyman in Donetsk. Officials from Ukraine's 66th mechanized brigade accused Russia of using the truce to prepare logistics routes for future assaults.
The United States has urged both sides to pursue a longer truce, with President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling for a 30-day ceasefire earlier this month. Kyiv accepted the proposal, but Moscow rejected it, citing unresolved issues related to verification. On Sunday, Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Russia's next moves would reveal its true stance toward U.S.-backed peace efforts.
Putin had framed the Easter ceasefire as a humanitarian gesture, instructing General Valery Gerasimov to be prepared to respond "in full" to any violations. Zelensky, standing in front of Saint Sophia's Cathedral in Kyiv on Sunday, reiterated his willingness to extend the truce and urged Ukrainians not to lose hope.
