Ukraine and its allies are ready for a “full, unconditional ceasefire” with Russia for at least 30 days starting on Monday, Ukrainian FM Andrii Sybiha said on Saturday. His remarks came as the leaders of four major European countries visited Kyiv, amid a push for Moscow to agree to a truce and launch peace talks on ending the nearly three-year war. It coincided with on the last day of a unilateral three-day ceasefire declared by Russia that Ukraine says the Kremlin's forces have repeatedly violated.
In March, the United States proposed an immediate, limited 30-day truce which Ukraine accepted, but the Kremlin has held out for terms more to its liking.
The leaders of France, Germany, Poland and the United Kingdom arrived together at the train station in Kyiv, and met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shortly after to join a ceremony at Kyiv's Independence Square marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. They lit candles at a makeshift flag memorial for fallen Ukrainian soldiers and civilians slain since Russia's invasion.
The visit marked the first time the leaders of the four countries have travelled together to Ukraine, while Friedrich Merz is making his first visit to Ukraine as Germany's new chancellor.
Sybiha on Thursday called the Russian truce a “farce,” accusing Russian forces of violating it over 700 times less than a day after it formally came into effect. Both sides also said attacks on their troops had continued on Thursday.
“We reiterate our backing for President Trump's calls for a peace deal and call on Russia to stop obstructing efforts to secure an enduring peace,” the leaders said in a joint statement. “Alongside the US, we call on Russia to agree a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire to create the space for talks on a just and lasting peace.
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Meanwhile, Russia has kept up attacks along the roughly 1,600-kilometre front line, including deadly strikes on residential areas with no obvious military targets.
On Saturday morning, local officials in Ukraine's northern Sumy region said Russian shelling over the past day killed three residents and wounded four more.
Another civilian man died on the spot on Saturday as a Russian drone struck the southern city of Kherson, according to regional Gov Oleksandr Prokudin.