This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.
US President Donald Trump called for a 30-day unconditional cease-fire between Russia and Ukraine and threatened more sanctions imposed by the United States and its partners if the cease-fire is not respected.
“Talks with Russia/Ukraine continue. The U.S. calls for, ideally, a 30-day unconditional ceasefire,” Trump said on May 8 on Truth Social shortly after speaking to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy by phone.
Trump said “both countries will be held accountable for respecting the sanctity” of the talks to halt the conflict. The US president said he wanted any cease-fire to then build to a “lasting peace.”
“It can all be done very quickly, and I will be available on a moment’s notice if my services are needed,” Trump said.
Trump made the statement after Ukraine’s top diplomat dismissed a Russian-declared cease-fire as a “farce,” accusing Moscow’s forces of committing hundreds of violations along the entire front line on the first day of the 72-hour truce.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s parliament ratified an agreement giving the United States privileged access to the country’s mineral wealth, cementing a deal Trump has cast as an important element of his efforts to broker an end to Russia’s war against its neighbor.
Zelenskyy welcomed the parliament’s ratification of the Economic Partnership Agreement, calling it “a truly historic document that opens up many new opportunities for cooperation.”
He said he spoke with Trump by phone and discussed “the need for continued efforts to achieve peace, including concrete steps that could be taken.” Zelenskyy said on X that Trump “confirmed that he wants this war to end, is ready to help, and supports the need for a ceasefire. We agreed on our further contacts.”
But the accusations that Russia was violating its promise to hold its fire for three days unless attacked underscore the challenges facing the push for peace. US Vice President JD Vance said a day earlier that “the gulf is wide” between the positions of Moscow and Kyiv.
Kyiv and other major Ukrainian cities were quiet after the cease-fire came into effect at midnight, with no reports of long-range drone or missile attacks after successive nights of bombardment.
But the situation at the front, which runs about 1,200 kilometers from the Russian border in the east to the Black Sea in the south, was a different story, Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha wrote in a post on X.
“According to our military data…Russian forces continue to attack across the entire frontline. From midnight to midday, Russia committed 734 cease-fire violations and 63 assault operations, 23 of which are still ongoing,” Sybiha wrote.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced last month that Russia would hold its fire from May 8 to May 10 — a period coinciding with a May 9 military parade on Red Square and other celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II — and urged Ukraine to do the same.
Sybiha wrote that there had been “586 attacks on our troops’ positions, 464 of which used heavy weapons; 176 strikes by…drones; and 10 air strikes using 16 guided aerial bombs.”
“Predictably, Putin’s ‘Parade ceasefire’ proves to be a farce,” he wrote.
The Ukrainian Air Force said earlier that Russian aircraft twice launched guided bombs targeting the Sumy region in northeastern Ukraine in the early hours of May 8, and a soldier in the eastern Donetsk region said Russian forces had used drones and bombs in morning attacks.
The air force said the first bombs in the Sumy region were launched nearly three hours after the cease-fire came into force at midnight. The second round of bombs was launched within two hours, it said on Telegram. There was no word on damage.
A soldier with Ukraine’s 115th Brigade, deployed at the front near Lyman in the Donetsk region, told Current Time that there was no shelling after midnight but that Russian forces targeted the Ukrainians with drones and bombs and that one soldier in his unit was wounded.
“This is what they call a cease-fire,” the soldier said.
The Reuters news agency cited a Ukrainian military spokesman as saying that Russian troops had continued to conduct assaults in several areas on the eastern front, which runs through the Donetsk region.
Air Alert
The Ukrainian Air Force declared an air alert across the eastern part of the country on the morning of May 8, citing what it said was the threat of a Russian ballistic missile attack.
Russia also accused Ukraine of violating the cease-fire, which Kyiv had not committed to observe. Zelenskyy and other officials asserted that it was an effort to create the impression that Moscow wants to end the war and a bid to ensure there were no Ukrainian attacks during the Victory Day ceremonies, which brought several foreign leaders to Moscow.
Among them was Chinese President Xi Jinping, who met with Putin in the Kremlin on May 8.
Amid Western sanctions, China has helped keep Russia’s economy going and fund its war against Ukraine, now in its fourth year since Putin ordered the full-scale invasion in February 2022, including by buying Russian oil and gas, and has not publicly criticized the Kremlin for the bloodshed.
Putin has used false claims that Ukraine’s government is neo-Nazi as one of the justifications for the unprovoked invasion.
“Together with our Chinese friends, we firmly stand on guard of historical truth, protect the memory of events of the war years and counter modern manifestations of neo-Nazism and militarism,” Putin said in a public portion of the meeting with Xi.
Xi told Putin that Beijing stood alongside Russia in the face of “unilateralism and hegemonic bullying,” a reference to the countries’ anti-US stance. He said “China will work with Russia to shoulder the special responsibilities of major world powers.”
Xi called Putin his “old friend” and Putin called Xi his “dear friend.”
After their meeting in Moscow on May 8, Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping signed a statement to deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership between their two countries.
The statement also said Moscow and Beijing would continue to strengthen their military collaboration and would “actively increase the coordination of their approaches and deepen practical cooperation.”
Other guests in Moscow include Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who has openly challenged the European Union’s support for Ukraine, and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, who made the trip despite EU pressure that visiting Moscow could derail Serbia’s ambitions to join the bloc.
Joint Investment
The minerals calls for the creation of a joint investment fund that is intended to help rebuild Ukraine once the fighting is over. Under the deal, Ukraine will contribute 50 percent of all revenues from the sale of new minerals, as well as oil and gas projects.
The Russian-declared cease-fire followed days of deadly Russian bombardments of Kyiv and other cities and three straight nights of Ukrainian drone attacks on Moscow, creating jitters ahead of the Victory Day parade on Red Square, which Putin traditionally addresses from a grandstand with guests in attendance.
Zelenskyy also said that Ukraine stood by its offer to observe a 30-day cease-fire in the war, which began when Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
“Our proposal for a halt to the strikes, for a cease-fire of at least 30 days, still stands — we are not withdrawing this proposal, as it offers a real chance for diplomacy,” he said in his nightly video address on May 7.
Russia has not responded to the 30-day cease-fire offer except for new strikes, he said.
“This clearly and obviously demonstrates to everyone who the source of the war is,” he added.
Zelenskyy also appeared to acknowledge the numerous drone attacks that have been targeting Russian sites this week. The attacks forced the closure of airports in Moscow and the grounding of flights.
“And it is entirely fair that the Russian sky — the sky of the aggressor — is not calm either today,” Zelenskyy said.
Both countries are under pressure from Trump to bring a swift end to the war, the biggest conflict in Europe since World War II.
Putin has said he is committed to achieving peace, but Vance said the Russians “are asking too much” as the United States tries to bring the two sides to the table.
Vance also suggested that Ukraine should not be fixated on the idea of a 30-day cease-fire. He said “the gulf is wide” but he is “reasonably optimistic” about the chances of ending the war.
“The step we need to take right now is we need Russia and Ukraine to start talking to one another,” said Vance. “We think it’s probably impossible for us to mediate the whole process fully without at least some direct negotiations.”
