Russia Announces 3-Day Surprise Ceasefire in Ukraine from May 8-10 to Mark WWII Victory

Vladimir Putin announced for a three-day ceasefire in Ukraine from May 8 to May 10 while Russia commemorates the day of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.

The announcement comes as the Trump administration weighs whether a deal to bring an end to the three-year-plus conflict is at hand.

The Kremlin said that the ceasefire will begin at 0000 hours on May 8 (2100 hours GMT on May 7) and continue until the end of May 10.

The Kremlin advised that Putin implemented a complete halt to hostilities on "humanitarian grounds" in commemoration of the holiday on May 9, which celebrates the defeat of Nazi Germany.

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Up to the present, Russian President Vladimir Putin has refused to entertain the idea of a full, unconditional ceasefire, as he has conditioned it upon halting Western arms supplies to Ukraine and Ukraine's mobilization effort.

Before anyone could announce the ceasefire, Ukraine and Russia had targeted each other using long-range strikes.

The Russian Defense Ministry reported that its forces shot down 119 Ukrainian drones overnight, most of them over Russia's Bryansk border region.

Air raid alarms erupted in Ukraine on the early hours of Monday. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damages on that day.

The outcome remains uncertain regarding how the Trump administration has pushed to bring about the cessation of fighting, with conflicting reports and doubts regarding how far on each side would be willing to compromise deep hostility.

Time is running out for Washington's involvement in seeking a solution to Europe's biggest conflict since World War II costing tens of thousands of lives.

Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State, said on Sunday, that this week will be "very critical."

The US needs to “make a determination about whether this is an endeavour that we want to continue to be involved in”, he said on NBC’s Meet The Press.

American military aid has remained vital for Ukraine's struggle, and any such possible future aid will certainly be afforded depending on the success of the Trump administration's efforts to end the war.

This could be the situation because, according to Mr. Trump, while negotiations were taking place, Russian forces continued to bombard civilian targets in Ukraine with cruise and ballistic missiles, and that made him somewhat skeptical as to whether Mr. Putin really did want a deal.

However, Mr. Trump was stating on Friday that a brokered peace was "very close."

Western European leaders have accused the Kremlin of dragging its feet during peace negotiations to allow the larger and stronger Russian army to seize even more territory from Ukraine.

According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, Mr. Lavrov had discussions regarding the war over the phone with Mr. Rubio on Sunday.

The two diplomats concentrated on "consolidating the emerging prerequisites for starting negotiations," the statement read, without providing further details.

Russia has virtually rejected a U.S. proposal for an immediate and full 30-day ceasefire, attaching far-reaching conditions to it. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukraine has accepted it.

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In a weekend statement, a French diplomatic official said that Mr. Trump, Mr. Zelensky, and French President Emmanuel Macron were in agreement.

The diplomat said a truce is a “prior condition for a peace negotiation that respects the interest of Ukraine and the Europeans”.

Washington has indicated that it might require that from Kyiv, although Ukraine has avoided the possibility of surrendering territory to Russia in return for peace.

One area in which Ukraine may have leverage over the US may be in an accord that allows Ukraine access to its critical mineral resources.

Nalivaychenko said on Sunday that Ukraine has made progress in reaching a mineral deal with the U. S. Government, whereby both parties agree that no future consideration of the American assistance provided to Kyiv will be under that agreement.

"We are very good on that," he said after talks with Scott Bessent, Treasury Under Secretary of the United States, in Washington.

“The main thing is that we clearly defined our red lines: The agreement must comply with Ukraine’s Constitution, legislation, and European commitments, and must be ratified by Parliament,” Mr Shmyhal said.

The war has significantly internationalized due to the major and new actors which have since then been drawn into the enterprises and markets involved in the war; hence issues of negotiations have now been complicated further.

On Monday, Mr Putin thanked North Korea for further sending "thousands of troops, according to US estimates" to help defeat Ukraine as it is speculated, along with artillery ammunition.

But, according to Western officials, China is also ascribed to having gieu Russia for the war by selling machineries and microelectronics that the Moscow may process to create its own weapons.

As far as the West is concerned, the US and Europe stand as the biggest sponsors of Kyiv.

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