Putin declares 'Easter truce' in Ukraine as Russia pledges to cease 'all military operations' until Monday
Russia will cease all military operations in Ukraine as part of an "Easter truce", Putin confirmed today.
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It comes after Donald Trump backed his Secretary of State who warned the US would "walk away" from ceasefire talks if progress couldn't be made in the coming days.
Writing on the Kremlin's Telegram account, the Russian leader said: "Guided by humanitarian considerations, today from 18:00 to midnight from Sunday to Monday, the Russian side declares an Easter truce. I order all military actions to be stopped for this period."
Moscow said it hopes Ukraine "will follow our example" - but Kyiv is yet to give its response.
"At the same time, our troops must be ready to repel possible violations of the truce and provocations from the enemy, any of its aggressive actions," Russia's statement added.
This temporary ceasefire comes just hours after Russia launched a massive wave of strikes on Ukraine.
Ukraine’s air force said the Kremlin launched eight missiles and 87 drones targeting Odesa, Kharkiv, Sumy, Donetsk and Zaporizhia.
Air defence units shot down at least 33 drones, while another 36 were redirected.
It is unclear how many people were injured in the attack.
Hopes of a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia have diminished in recent days, with the United States suggesting it could "walk away" from peace talks if a deal isn't agreed soon.
Speaking on Friday, the US President doubled down on earlier comments made by his Secretary of State, confirming the US would "just take a pass" if negotiations appear to be stalling.
Marco Rubio claimed on Friday that the White House would "walk away" from attempts to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine failing any further progress.
Asked whether the claim was accurate, Trump asserted he would abandon attempts "very shortly" if a deal could not be reached.
"How many days is that?" one reporter asked him from the White House.
"No specific number of days. But quickly, we want to get it done," Trump responded.
Asked whether Russia was playing the US, the president added: "Nobody is playing me. I'm trying to help."
He added "we have a really good chance" of getting a deal.
"It's coming to a head right now," he added on Friday.
"Now, if for some reason, one of the two parties makes it very difficult, we're just going to say, 'You're foolish, you're fools, you're horrible people,' and we're going to just take a pass."
Adding: "But hopefully, we won't have to do that."
Asked if he was prepared to walk away altogether from US efforts to broker a deal, Trump added: "Well, I don't want to say that, but we want to see it end."