Russia broke unilateral ceasefire with drone and missile attacks, Ukraine's FM says

Published connected 06/05/2026 - 9:16 GMT+2•Updated 9:16

Ukraine said connected Wednesday that Russia had violated a unilateral ceasefire called by Kyiv by launching a barrage of aerial strikes connected Ukrainian cities with 108 combat drones and 3 missiles.

"This shows that Russia rejects bid and its fake calls for a ceasefire connected May 9th person thing to bash with diplomacy. Putin lone cares astir subject parades, not quality lives," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote successful a station connected X, connected societal media, referring to the Kremlin's ain unilateral telephone for a halt to warring during its World War II triumph parade connected 9 May.

Sybiha called connected Ukraine's partners to summation unit connected Moscow "including caller rounds of sanctions, isolation, accountability for Russian crimes and enhanced enactment for Ukraine successful each areas."

On Monday, Moscow uniltaterally announced a ceasefire, owed to coincide with its yearly World War II triumph celebrations connected 9 May.

The 9 May parade is typically a bombastic show of subject strength, which since 2022 has sought to nexus Soviet triumph implicit Nazi Germany with the penetration of Ukraine.

But the Kremlin ordered a scaled-back mentation this year, with nary subject hardware to beryllium connected display, implicit the fearfulness it could beryllium targeted by Ukraine.

Ukraine aboriginal announced its ain ceasefire, owed to commencement earlier connected 6 May, and slammed Moscow's "cynicism" for continuing aerial strikes.

What happens now?

After Russia's evident rejection of Ukraine's ceasefire proposal, the question present is what volition hap connected 1 of the astir important dates successful the Russian calendar, the 9 May triumph parade.

After Moscow informed Washington astir its unilateral ceasefire for 8-9 May, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy responded with a counteroffer saying quality beingness is acold much invaluable than immoderate day celebration.

"It is clip for Russian leaders to instrumentality existent steps to extremity their war, particularly since Russia's Defence Ministry believes it cannot clasp a parade successful Moscow without Ukraine's goodwill," Zelenskyy said, informing that Kyiv would "act reciprocally starting from that moment."

Ukrainian forces person already demonstrated they tin deed targets good beyond Moscow aft a critically important military-industrial analyzable successful Cheboksary was deed connected Tuesday, astir 1,000 kilometres wrong Russian territory.

Zelenskyy published a video of launches of Ukraine's domestically-made Flamingo cruise missiles, which helium said covered a region of much than 1,500km to onslaught the facility.