Russia says its forces continue ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine following end of ceasefire

In a statement, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed Moscow had “strictly observed” the truce beginning May 8 while accusing Ukraine of committing 30,383 ceasefire violations.

“Despite the declared ceasefire, Ukrainian armed forces carried out strikes using unmanned aerial vehicles and fired artillery at Russian troop positions,” said in the statement published on Russian social media Max.

The ministry also claimed that Ukraine launched 5,825 drones on Monday, adding that Russia “responded in kind.”

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed Russia launched more than 200 drones overnight, accusing Moscow of choosing “to end the partial ceasefire.”

“We have said that we will respond in kind to all Russian steps,” Zelenskyy wrote on the US social media company X.

Independent verification of the claims remains difficult because of the ongoing war.

A three-day Russia-Ukraine ceasefire proposed by US President Donald Trump expired at 2100GMT Monday.

Trump said Friday that Moscow and Kyiv had agreed to a truce from May 9-11 along with a 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner exchange, describing the move as a possible step toward ending the war.

Before Trump’s proposal, Moscow announced a unilateral ceasefire for May 8-9 to mark the anniversary of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II and warned Ukraine of a “massive” missile response if Victory Day celebrations were disrupted.

Kyiv later said it would observe a ceasefire beginning May 6.