Ukraine disputes Russian claims of 900 attacks during truce
Russia claims that Ukraine breached the Easter truce by conducting 900 attacks. Meanwhile, Kyiv refutes these allegations, emphasising that it is merely responding to Russian actions. "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," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday.
The Russian Ministry of Defence accused Ukraine of breaking the conditions of the Easter truce. According to Russia, Ukrainian armed forces shelled Russian positions 444 times and conducted 900 drone attacks. The Russians claim that these actions have resulted in civilian casualties and injuries.
Easter truce. Fighting continues
The Ukrainian armed forces strongly refute Russia's allegations. They claim that their actions are merely a response to Russian attacks that started right after Putin announced the truce.
The Ukrainian military emphasises that their reactions are symmetrical and rational, responding in the same manner to each Russian attack.
"Despite Ukraine declaring a symmetrical approach to Russian actions, an increase in Russian shelling and the use of kamikaze drones has been observed since 10:00 a.m. – with FPV drone usage alone doubling by the Russian army. The most active Russian operations this morning have been carried out in the Pokrovsk and Siversk directions. In these and several other areas of the frontline, Russia continues to use heavy weaponry," Zelensky reported.
According to the president, on Sunday morning, the Russian army conducted its most active operations in the Pokrovsk and Siversk directions, in eastern Ukraine.
Zelensky: Putin does not fully control his army
"Russia continues to use heavy weaponry. Between midnight and noon today, Russian forces have already carried out 26 assaults," the president informed.
"In practice, 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, and are only interested in favourable PR coverage," Zelensky assessed.
According to the president, instead of broadcasting Easter services from Moscow on television, there should be pressure on the Kremlin to truly agree to a full ceasefire and maintain it for at least 30 days after Easter. "Give diplomacy a chance," the politician appealed.
"Putin's truce". Fighting continues
Putin announced on Saturday an Easter truce in the war with Ukraine, which, according to his words, is supposed to be in force for 30 hours - from 6 PM Moscow time to midnight on Monday. Shortly after the indicated start time of the truce, Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Ukrainian government's Centre for Countering Disinformation, informed that Russian forces continue to attack Ukrainian positions.
