Ukraine war briefing: Easter truce falters as Russia and Ukraine exchange prisoners

Russia and Ukraine on Saturday accused each other of violating a brief ceasefire in their four-year-old war, hours into the truce put in place to mark Orthodox Easter. Governors of two Russian border regions said Ukrainian drones had attacked targets in the Kursk and Belgorod regions, injuring five people. The general staff of Ukraine’s military said Russian forces had violated the terms of the 32-hour truce through assault actions, shelling and drone strikes.

By late Saturday, Ukraine’s military said in a Facebook post that “469 ceasefire violations were recorded, namely: 22 enemy assault actions, 153 shelling attacks, 19 strikes by attack drones ... and 275 strikes by FPV drones.” In total, the Ukrainian military said Saturday had seen Russia carry out 57 airstrikes and drop 182 guided aerial bombs, along with deploying 3,928 drones and conducting 2,454 shelling attacks “on populated areas and positions of our troops”.

In Russia’s Kursk region, which borders Ukraine, governor Alexander Khinshtein also accused Kyiv of breaking the 32-hour truce by attacking a gas station in the town of Lgov with a drone, injuring three people, including a baby.

Despite tensions over the truce, the warring sides exchanged 175 prisoners of war each on Saturday, according to officials from both sides. Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine had brought home 175 servicemen and seven civilians from Russian captivity. Andrii Yusov, a Ukrainian defence intelligence representative, said 163 of those freed had been held since 2022. “This is a real success, a very significant achievement,” Yusov said. “It is very hard to imagine what these people have been through during that time and you can see that the men are returning in varying conditions.” Russia’s defence ministry said the United Arab Emirates had mediated the exchange. Russia took back 175 servicemen and also seven civilians originally from the Kursk region, the ministry said.

Russian news agencies said Vladimir Putin attended services after midnight at Moscow’s vast Christ the Saviour Cathedral. In his Easter greeting, quoted by agencies, the Russian leader described Easter as the “triumph of love, good and justice”. He also expressed thanks to Orthodox Patriarch Kirill for his support of those fighting in Russia’s military campaign, described as a “special military operation“. “I would like especially to note the effective assistance you provide to our heroes – the participants and veterans of the special military operation,” he wrote.

Zelenskyy, in his nightly video address, made no reference to alleged ceasefire violations. The Ukrainian president repeated that Ukraine would stick to the truce and wished it could be in effect longer. “It would be right for the ceasefire to continue beyond this,” Zelenskyy said. “We have made this proposal to Russia and if Russia once again chooses war instead of peace, it will show the world, and particularly the United States, who truly wants what.”

Hungarians vote on Sunday in an election that could end prime minister Viktor Orbán’s 16-year hold on power. For Ukraine, Hungary’s eastern neighbour, an Orbán defeat could mean the unblocking of a €90bn (US$105bn) European Union loan vital for Kyiv’s war effort. It would also deprive Russia of its closest ally in the EU.