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A three-day ceasefire agreement between Russia and Ukraine announced by US President Donald Trump on Friday eased tensions over a possible Ukrainian attack on a Red Square parade in Moscow, but the agreement is unlikely to set the stage for a comprehensive peace deal.<\/p>\n
Despite the failure of a unilateral ceasefire announced by Ukraine and Russia earlier this week, both sides blame each other, Trump said on Friday as the leader of Russia and Ukraine<\/a> Agreed to their request for a ceasefire lasting from Saturday to Monday and an exchange of prisoners. Trump said the pause in fighting could be “the beginning of the end” of the war that has dragged on for a fifth year.<\/p>\n Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov confirmed that Russia had accepted Trump’s initiative for a three-day ceasefire and an exchange of 1,000 prisoners of war from each side.<\/p>\n Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine’s agreement to the US-brokered deal was motivated by the possibility of freeing its prisoners. At the same time, he mockingly issued a decree allowing Russia to hold its Victory Day celebrations on Saturday, and declaring Red Square temporarily off-limits for Ukrainian attacks. <\/p>\n “Red Square matters less to us than the lives of Ukrainian prisoners of war who can be brought home,” Zelensky wrote on Telegram.<\/p>\n Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed Zelensky’s order to “authorize” the Red Square parade as a “stupid joke.”<\/p>\n “We don’t need anyone’s permission to be proud of our Victory Day,” Peskov told reporters.<\/p>\n Before this, a unilateral ceasefire in ukraine<\/a> What Russia had announced for Friday and Saturday was soon resolved. Moscow and Kiev blame each other for the ongoing fighting, as they did when Ukraine’s own unilateral ceasefire rapidly collapsed earlier in the week.<\/p>\n The allegations reflect a deep trust deficit between the two sides, more than four years after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbor. he has failed US-led diplomatic efforts<\/a> To find a peace solution.<\/p>\n Ukraine’s new Drone and Missile Technology<\/a> In recent months it has enabled repeated and precise attacks deep into Russia, Particularly major oil facilities<\/a>.<\/p>\n During this time, thunder of sorrow<\/a> Some of the Kremlin’s wartime policies have put the spotlight on Putin, who is scheduled to deliver a Victory Day speech on Saturday commemorating the victory over Nazi Germany 81 years ago.<\/p>\n The Russian Defense Ministry claimed on Friday that when Putin’s unilateral ceasefire came into force, from midnight its forces in Ukraine “completely ceased combat operations and remained at their previously occupied lines and positions”.<\/p>\n But it accused Ukrainian forces of continuing to attack Russian targets as well as civilian infrastructure in the border areas of Belgorod and Kursk regions.<\/p>\n According to the ministry, after midnight air defense forces shot down 390 Ukrainian drones and six Neptune long-range guided missiles aimed at Russia.<\/p>\n Russia’s transport ministry said a Ukrainian drone attack hit the administrative building of the Southern Russia Air Navigation Branch in Rostov-on-Don, causing 13 airports in the south of the country to suspend operations. Flights resumed on Friday afternoon, but officials said it would take three days for air travel to be fully restored in the region.<\/p>\n Speaking during a meeting of Russia’s Security Council, Putin called the attack a “terrorist” attack and praised traffic controllers for helping to avoid tragic consequences.<\/p>\n Zelensky had a different story. Russian forces continued attacking the front line throughout the night, he said, while Ukrainian air defense forces shot down 56 Russian drones.<\/p>\n \u201cAll this clearly shows that there was not even any pretense of an attempt at a ceasefire on the Russian side,\u201d Zelensky said.<\/p>\n Ukraine also claimed on Friday more long range attacks<\/a> On Russian oil facilities. Zelensky said one attack occurred in the Yaroslavl region, more than 700 kilometers (430 miles) from the border, though he did not say when the attack occurred. Ukraine’s security service said a separate attack hit a major Russian oil refinery and pipeline pumping station in the Perm region more than 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) away.<\/p>\n Putin, who has ruled Russia for more than 25 years, has used the USSR’s victory in World War II to drum up support for himself and the war in Ukraine, as well as to demonstrate Russia’s global clout.<\/p>\n