The war in Ukraine

Putin: three-day truce in May. Kiev: if Russia wants peace the truce should be immediate and one month long

North Korea - followed by Putin - officially confirmed the deployment of its troops to support Russia in the war against Ukraine under a mutual defence treaty. The Kremlin announced a ceasefire from midnight on 8 May to midnight on 11 May.

28 April 2025

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4' min read

Key points

Trump: "Zelensky asked for more weapons"
Moscow: "115 Ukrainian drones shot down, one dead in Bryansk"
Moscow: "115 Ukrainian drones shot down, one dead in Bryansk"

4' min read

"President Trump wants a permanent Russian-Ukrainian truce," the White House spokeswoman said in her daily briefing today. Leavitt reported that Trump is increasingly frustrated with Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky and that both must sit down at the negotiating table to end the war. The spokeswoman acknowledged that Putin has proposed a new temporary ceasefire but reiterated that President Trump wants a permanent ceasefire.

In fact, the Kremlin announced today thatRussia will observe a ceasefire from midnight on 8 May to midnight on 11 May, straddling 9 May, when the Russian Federation celebrates Victory Day, the defeat of Nazism, and the end of World War II, which Moscow calls the Great Patriotic War.

Ukraine's response to Russian openness and US demands was not long in coming. Indeed, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga commented on X on Putin's unilateral declaration of a three-day truce as of 8 May, announcing that "if Russia really wants peace, it should cease fire immediately. Why wait until 8 May? If the war could be stopped now and the truce maintained for 30 days, it would be a real step forward, not just a gesture for a parade'.

Even sharper was Ukrainian President Zelensky, who said that Putin's truce proposal was 'an attempt at manipulation'. "Everyone must wait until 8 May and only then would there be a ceasefire to guarantee silence" during the 9 May parade in Moscow's Red Square, he said in his evening speech.

Rubio to Lavrov: time to end senseless war

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Russian Foreign Minister Serghei Lavrov that it is time to end the 'meaningless war' in Ukraine. Rubio, in a recent interview, called this week 'crucial' for understanding the intentions of Russia and Ukraine, and for the US to decide whether or not to continue the peace effort.

EU: 'Moscow does not want peace, desperate appeal to Korea'

Meanwhile, North Korea confirmed for the first time that it has deployed troops in support of Russia in Moscow's war against Ukraine, in accordance with the mutual defence treaty.The deployment of North Korean troops was carried out "on the order" of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, in accordance with the mutual defence treaty between Pyongyang and Moscow, the North Korean news agency KCNA reported, quoted by Yonhap News.

The strengthening of military cooperation between Russia and North Korea 'sends a very clear message: Russia is not interested in peace, on the contrary, its goal remains to suppress Ukraine and it desperately seeks any possible help to continue its illegal aggression'. This was said by a European Commission spokeswoman. Russia's "is a desperate appeal" to other actors and "only shows how isolated they are and how we are weakening them with sanctions," the spokeswoman pointed out, assuring that the EU will continue "to do even more" with sanctions and "to support" Kiev.

Wsj: Putin is expanding bases and troops on NATO borders

About 160 kilometres from the Finnish border, in the Russian city of Petrozavodsk, Russian military engineers are expanding military bases where the Kremlin plans to create a new army headquarters to oversee tens of thousands of soldiers in the coming years. This is what the Wall Street Journal writes. The soldiers, many of whom are now on the front line in Ukraine, are expected to form the backbone of Russia's anti-NATO army. The Kremlin is expanding military recruitment, strengthening arms production, and upgrading railway lines in border areas.

Putin thanks North Korean soldiers: 'They are heroes'

Russian President Vladimir Putin thanked in a message the North Korean soldiers who took part in the 'liberation of the Kursk region' from the invading Ukrainian troops, calling them 'heroes'. This was reported by the Kremlin press service.

Trump: "Zelensky asked for more weapons"

Volodymyr Zelensky is "calmer" and "wants an agreement". This was said by Donald Trump, according to US media reports, after his meeting with the Ukrainian president in St Peter's. A meeting that "went well". "Zelensky is doing a good job and wants a deal.He asked for more weapons," Trump added.

Moscow: "115 Ukrainian drones shot down, one dead in Bryansk"

Moscow claims to have shot down 115 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory tonight and that one civilian was killed in one of the attacks carried out by the Kiev forces' unmanned aircraft, the one over the western city of Bryansk.

Kiev: "5 civilians killed in Russian raids on Donetsk region"

Yesterday, 27 April, the Russian army killed 5 civilians living in the Donetsk region of the Donbass and wounded 6 others, Ukrainian Donetsk regional governor Vadym Filashkin wrote on Facebook, quoted by Ukrinform. Of the victims, 3 lived in Kostyantynivka, where aerial bombs were dropped on residential areas, and 2 in Novoekonomichesky.

South Korea condemns North Korean troop deployment

South Korea expressed strong condemnation after Pyongyang and Moscow confirmed the deployment of North Korean troops in Russia, calling it an 'illegal act'. This was stated by Defence Ministry spokesman Jeon Ha-kyu on Monday. "The participation of North Korean troops in the war in Ukraine violates the UN Charter and UN Security Council resolutions, making it an illegal act," Jeon told a press conference.

Kremlin: on resumption of negotiations awaited signal from Kiev

The signal on Ukraine's readiness to resume direct negotiations with Russia is expected to come from Kiev. This was told to journalists by the Russian president's spokesman Dmitry Peskov, as reported by Tass. Asked from whom Russia is waiting for a signal on the matter, whether from Washington or directly from Kiev, Peskov replied: 'From Kiev. At least Kiev should take some action on the matter' but 'so far we have not seen any action'.