Moscow Rejects UN Proposal for Ceasefire

Russia has rejected the UN Secretary-General António Guterres' proposal for a four-day "Easter ceasefire" in Ukraine. The rationale behind this decision was explained by Dmitry Polyansky, Russia's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN.

According to him, Kyiv authorities would use these days to regroup Ukrainian military forces and receive new batches of armaments. "In these circumstances, calls for peace and a ceasefire are not sincere," the diplomat stated.

On April 19, the UN Secretary-General had proposed a so-called four-day "Easter ceasefire" to both Russia and Ukraine. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry responded positively to the proposal the very next day.

It’s worth noting that early in the morning on February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that he had decided to launch a special military operation in Ukraine following requests for assistance from the self-proclaimed Luhansk and Donetsk People's Republics. The goal of the operation is to demilitarize and denazify Ukraine and to push it towards neutrality.

Combat operations in Ukraine have now been ongoing for 57 days.