Ukraine sceptical about Putin’s ceasefirepublished at 10:26 British Summer Time
10:26 BST
Frank Gardner
Security correspondent, in Kyiv
Image source, Getty Images“A three-day ceasefire? Why not 30 days? Or longer?”
That’s the view here in Ukraine, where people remain sceptical that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s proposed three-day ceasefire is nothing more than a theatrical gesture.
His hastily announced Easter truce was broken numerous times by both sides.
Speaking to journalists during his recent visit to Prague, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said there was no trust in Putin’s offer.
“They kill until [May] 7th, pause for a couple of comfortable days, then start attacking again on the 11th,” he said. Ukraine has agreed to a 30-day US ceasefire proposal, but Russia has not.
There are several possible explanations for why Moscow has proposed this short ceasefire, due to start at midnight on Wednesday night.
Perhaps the most obvious one is that Putin wants nothing to disrupt the Victory Day parade on Friday.
The last thing he wants is a swarm of Ukrainian drones penetrating Moscow’s airspace above Red Square with all the world watching.
Another explanation is that Russian troops on the front line are exhausted, as are the Ukrainians, and this would give them a breathing space.
And then there is President Trump. The Kremlin, rattled by some of his recent comments, is keen to convince him that Russia does indeed want this war to end.