Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused the Kremlin of “utter cynicism” for requesting a truce to stage a military parade in Moscow, as 23 people were killed in Russian attacks across Ukraine.
At least 12 people died in a strike on the southern city of Zaporizhzhia on Tuesday, according to regional governor Ivan Fedorov. Five more were killed in an attack on the eastern city of Kramatorsk, which Zelenskyy said “hit right in the city centre, targeting civilians”. In the central Poltava region, three employees of state energy firm Naftogaz were killed in an initial strike on a gas facility, and two emergency service workers died in a follow-on bombing. Thirty-seven people were injured.
“It is utter cynicism to ask for a ceasefire in order to hold propaganda celebrations while carrying out missile and drone strikes every single day leading up to it,” Zelenskyy said. “Russia could cease fire at any moment, and this would stop the war and our responses.”
Vladimir Putin has announced a unilateral ceasefire around Russia marking the anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany on Friday. For the first time in nearly 20 years, the Red Square parade will take place without military hardware, amid fears Ukraine could target the event with long-range drones. Zelenskyy has offered his own 24-hour ceasefire, beginning at midnight on Wednesday, and said Ukraine would “act reciprocally” if Russia stopped firing.
Russia’s defence ministry said it had downed more than 300 Ukrainian drones between late Monday and early Tuesday. On the battlefield, Russia’s progress has stalled; it lost more territory than it captured in April, according to AFP analysis of data from the Institute for the Study of War.
