Kiev: 'Russia has violated the ceasefire, they reject peace'

Kiev stated that Russia violated the unilateral ceasefire demanded by Ukraine by attacking Ukrainian cities with 108 combat drones and three missiles. "This shows that Russia rejects peace and that its false calls for a ceasefire on 9 May have nothing to do with diplomacy. Putin only cares about military parades, not human lives,' Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga wrote on social media, referring to the Kremlin's unilateral call for a cessation of hostilities during the military parade for victory in World War II on 9 May.

In the last hours, Ukraine reported a Russian air raid this morning in the southern region of Zaporizhzhia. The attack occurred a few hours after the unilateral ceasefire proclaimed by Kiev came into effect at midnight. "The enemy attacked an industrial plant. There were no injuries,' said Ivan Fedorov, head of the regional military administration in Zaporizhzhia.

The ceasefire violation by the Russians was also stigmatised by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. "As of today, we can confirm that the Russian side has violated the ceasefire regime. Based on the evening reports of our armed forces and intelligence services, we will decide on our further actions," reads a social media post by the president of Ukraine. "After yesterday's fierce attacks on our cities and communities - Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Kramatorsk and others - the Russian military continued to conduct active hostilities and terrorist bombardments throughout this day as well. Russia's choice represents a clear rejection of the ceasefire and the preservation of human lives,' the post reads, 'attacks continue on all key sectors of the frontline, and since the beginning of this day alone, the Russian army has already launched almost 30 assaults. During the night and this morning alone, more than 20 airstrikes have been recorded with the use of more than 70 aerial bombs." "During the night, the Russian army also launched attacks with various types of drones," Zelensky added, "in particular, the Ukrainian Defence Forces alone neutralised almost 90 attack drones. There were also missile attacks. In total, as of 10 a.m., the Russian military had committed 1,820 violations of the ceasefire regime - shelling, attempted assaults, air strikes and the use of drones'.

Truce violations by the Russian army are reflected in attacks by the Ukrainian Armed Forces reported by the Moscow authorities. According to Tass reports, the Ukrainian Armed Forces again attacked an administrative building in Energodar. Moscow denounced what it called Kiev's 'neo-Nazi rampage', also condemning a bombing carried out by Ukrainian forces in the night on Russian-occupied Crimea, which according to local authorities left five people dead in the town of Dzhankoy. "This is an act of terrorism by the Kiev regime, whose neo-Nazi fury has intensified in the run-up to 9 May," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Tass, referring to the anniversary of the victory over Nazi-Fascism in the so-called Great Patriotic War, which will be celebrated on Saturday.