MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced a temporary ceasefire in the Ukraine war to mark Orthodox Easter from late Saturday to Sunday.
It is set to begin on Saturday at 4 pm (13:00 GMT) and last throughout Sunday, the Kremlin said in a statement on Thursday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the ceasefire announced by Putin, saying: "We proposed a ceasefire during the Easter holidays this year and will act accordingly".
"People need an Easter free from threats and real movement towards peace and Russia has a chance not to return to strikes after Easter as well", he said on X.
Zelensky had repeatedly called for a holiday ceasefire.
Orthodox Christians, such as those in Russia and Ukraine, celebrate Easter on April 12 this year.
The Kremlin said Defence Minister Andrei Belousov and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov were ordered to suspend all military operations during the temporary truce. Troops must remain ready to respond to any "provocations by the enemy", the statement said. "We assume that the Ukrainian side will follow the example of the Russian Federation".
During previous temporary ceasefires, both sides have accused each other of violations and of using the pauses to redeploy troops and resupply.
Last year, Putin announced a 30-hour ceasefire over Orthodox Easter. A similar truce was declared during the World War commemorations in May. However, the Russian president rejected calls for a Christmas ceasefire.
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