Russia-Ukraine war: Putin announces three-day ceasefire in May to mark Victory Day celebrations

Moscow, April 28 (IANS) Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday announced a 72-hour ceasefire in its ongoing 'Special Military Operation' in Ukraine on account of the Victory Day celebrations, next month.

"By decision of the President of the Russian Federation, Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation V.V. Putin, for humanitarian reasons, during the days of the 80th anniversary of the Victory, from midnight on May 7-8 until midnight on May 10-11, the Russian side declares a ceasefire. All military actions are suspended for this period," read a statement issued by the Kremlin on Monday afternoon.

"Russia believes that the Ukrainian side should follow this example. In case of ceasefire violations by the Ukrainian side, the Russian Armed Forces will provide an adequate and effective response. The Russian side once again declares its readiness for peace negotiations without preconditions, aimed at eliminating the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis, and constructive interaction with international partners," it added.

The celebrations on Red Square in Moscow will mark the 80th anniversary of Russia's victory in the Great Patriotic War.

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also held a telephonic conversation with the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, highlighting the importance of strengthening conditions to launch talks on achieving peace in Ukraine, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday.

“The focus was on the Ukraine crisis. As a follow-up to the April 25 conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US Special Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff, the Foreign Minister and the Secretary of State emphasised the importance of consolidating the emerging prerequisites for launching talks in order to agree on a reliable path to long-term sustainable peace," the statement read.

"The parties continued a fruitful exchange of views on the key aspects of Russia-US political dialogue, which has significantly intensified recently," it added.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier that President Putin was ready to resume negotiations with Ukraine without preconditions.

Earlier this month, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had confirmed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also received an invitation for participation in Russia's Victory Day celebrations next month.

"Our Prime Minister has received an invitation for the participation in the Victory Day celebrations. We will be announcing our participation in the Victory Day celebration at the appropriate time," Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said during a weekly media briefing in New Delhi.

Russian media reported that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is likely to attend the celebrations next month.

"[Singh's visit to Moscow for the parade] is possible," reported Russia's state-run news agency Tass, citing Indian government sources.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has stated that many countries have confirmed their participation in the upcoming events on May 9 in Moscow, with invites going out to several foreign leaders from different countries and not just the CIS members.

Russian President Vladimir Putin had earlier invited Prime Minister Modi to attend the celebrations to mark the 75th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War in Moscow in May 2020.

Earlier, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov had confirmed that Putin is expected to visit India in early 2025 following an invitation from Prime Minister Modi.

The visit is being planned as part of the ongoing commitment to annual meetings between the two leaders.

The last visit by the Russian President to India took place on December 6, 2021, during the 21st India-Russia Annual Summit in New Delhi.

Meanwhile, PM Modi held two high-profile visits to Russia last year, attending the 22nd Russia-India Summit in July and later participated in the BRICS Summit held in Kazan in October.

--IANS

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