Vladimir Putin announced a ceasefire for May 8th and 9th.image: keystone
May 5, 2026, 7:42 am05/05/2026, 08:13
Before Victory Day on May 9th, which is particularly important for Russia, Kiev surprisingly announced its own ceasefire after Moscow. “We are announcing a ceasefire starting at midnight (11 p.m. CEST) on the night of May 5th to 6th,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
As of today, there has been no official appeal to Ukraine regarding the modality of a cessation of hostilities that is being claimed on Russian social media. We believe that human life is far more valuable than any anniversary “celebration”. In this regard, we are announcing a…
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 4, 2026
If the Russian side does not adhere to this, Kiev will react in the same way. He did not specify a time limit for the ceasefire. Russia had previously announced a ceasefire for May 8th and 9th.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha called on the international community to support the Ukrainian initiative. “Peace cannot wait for “parades” and “holidays,” he wrote on X, referring to the annual military parade marking the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany on Saturday. If Moscow is ready for an end to the fighting, this could happen as early as tomorrow. “May 6th shows whether Moscow is serious and what it really wants: peace or military parades.”
Russia announces two-day ceasefire and threatens
The Ukrainian announcement followed a Russian move. The Defense Ministry in Moscow had announced a ceasefire for May 8th and 9th. This was an order from Russian President Vladimir Putin. “We assume that the Ukrainian side will follow this example,” the ministry wrote. Nevertheless, the Russian military will do everything possible to secure the celebrations. Among other things, according to media reports, mobile internet connections in the Russian capital will only work to a limited extent over the next few days.
The military authority referred to a suggestion by Zelensky about Russian fears of possible Ukrainian drone flights over Moscow on May 9th. In the event of such attacks, the ministry threatened a “massive rocket strike on the center of Kiev”. Civilians and foreign diplomats should therefore leave the Ukrainian capital in good time.
On Monday night, a Ukrainian drone hit a high-rise residential building in Moscow just over six kilometers from Red Square. The large military parade on Victory Day is traditionally held on the square by the Kremlin wall – this year, for the first time since 2007, without the display of tanks and rocket technology.
A Ukrainian drone struck a residential building in Moscow on Monday. Image: keystone
April ceasefire proposal
Putin and US President Donald Trump discussed a possible ceasefire for the Russian holiday in a telephone conversation at the end of April. Both sides then claimed the initiative. As early as 2025, Russia had already declared a three-day ceasefire to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the end of the war in Europe.
After the phone call from Trump and Putin, Zelenskyj demanded details of their agreements. Kiev had repeatedly spoken out in favor of a permanent ceasefire and a subsequent peace agreement secured by security guarantees for Ukraine.
Ukraine has been defending itself against a Russian invasion with Western support for more than four years. For several weeks now, the Ukrainian military has been increasingly successful in attacking distant targets in the Russian hinterland with drones. (sda/dpa)