The head of the Ukrainian President’s office, Kyrylo Budanov, stated that the “Easter truce” will not evolve into a long-term ceasefire, despite hopes for peace.
After the announcement of the “Easter truce” made by Russian President Vladimir Putin, the situation remains tense. The new ceasefire, which was supposed to last from April 11 to the end of the Easter holidays, did not hold due to numerous violations by Russian military forces. According to the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, within less than a day after the truce was announced, Russian occupiers violated the agreements more than two thousand times. Previous experiences of such truces, as noted by Budanov, do not provide grounds for optimism, as similar agreements in the past were often violated.
In response to a question about the chances of achieving a long-term peace, Budanov replied that this time it is unlikely due to the previous experience of such agreements in 2025, when the Russian side constantly violated them. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian side is also preparing for a new exchange of prisoners with Russia. The next stage of the exchange, according to Budanov, may take place at the end of next week, despite certain bureaucratic difficulties. Recently, 175 military personnel and seven civilians were returned to Ukraine.
Experts emphasize the importance of further efforts to achieve lasting peace but recognize that without strong guarantees from Russia, this remains unattainable for now. At the same time, despite the difficult situation, Ukrainian military forces have not recorded aviation and missile strikes from the occupiers during the holidays.
