Russia and Ukraine exchanged heavy strikes on Friday, effectively collapsing a unilateral two-day cease-fire declared by Moscow to coincide with its World War II commemorations.
Ukraine did not agree to the pause, instead accusing Russian President Vladimir Putin of attempting to briefly quiet the battlefield in order to stage a high-profile Victory Day parade on Red Square.
Kyiv also said Moscow ignored its own earlier proposal for a short-term truce, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy framed as a test of whether the Kremlin was serious about de-escalation after four years of war.
Russia, meanwhile, has warned of a large-scale strike on Kyiv if Ukraine disrupts Saturday’s parade, repeatedly advising foreign diplomats to leave the capital ahead of the event.
“On the Russian side, there was not even a token attempt to cease fire on the front,” Zelenskyy said.
