Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced a temporary 30-hour Easter ceasefire in the ongoing war with Ukraine, slated to begin at 18:00 Moscow time on April 19 and last until midnight on April 21. The declaration, made during a meeting with Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov in Moscow, is being described by the Kremlin as a gesture of humanitarian goodwill. However, the ceasefire’s implementation was immediately marred by accusations of violations, deep skepticism from Kiev, and growing signs that international patience-especially from Washington-is running thin.

President Putin framed the ceasefire as an opportunity for reflection and potential progress toward peace, tying the initiative to the spiritual significance of Easter in the Orthodox Christian calendar. “At the same time,” he noted, “our troops must be prepared to respond to any violations or provocations by the adversary, to any aggressive actions.”

Putin emphasized that Ukraine’s response-or lack thereof-would serve as a litmus test of Kiev’s sincerity toward ending the conflict. He recalled the 30-day energy infrastructure truce brokered by the United States in March, which he claims was violated by Ukraine more than a hundred times. “We know that the Kiev regime has violated the agreement on pausing energy infrastructure strikes more than a hundred times,” Putin stated. “Therefore, I ask you [Gerasimov] to remain extremely vigilant and prepared for an immediate and full-force response.”

The Russian Defense Ministry subsequently confirmed the ceasefire, framing it as a humanitarian gesture contingent on mutual observance by Ukrainian........

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