Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of rejecting efforts to halt fighting, as competing ceasefire proposals between Kyiv and Moscow appeared to collapse amid continued attacks across Ukraine.
“Russia’s choice is an obvious spurning of a ceasefire and of saving lives,” Zelensky wrote on social media, following another night of large-scale drone strikes.
The Ukrainian leader said Kyiv had earlier pledged to “act in kind” regarding Russia’s proposed ceasefire around May 9 Victory Day commemorations, when Moscow traditionally marks the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II with major public events and a military parade on Red Square.
“It is obvious to any reasonable person that a full-scale war and the daily murdering of people are a bad time for public celebrations,” Zelensky stated.
The comments have fueled speculation over possible Ukrainian strikes targeting Moscow during the Victory Day period, one of the most symbolically important events for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Kyiv said Russian forces attacked eastern and southern Ukraine overnight using more than 100 drones, a day after Russian strikes reportedly killed nearly 30 civilians.
Ukrainian officials say Russia continued combat operations despite Kyiv’s proposal for a ceasefire beginning at midnight on May 6. Moscow had earlier announced a separate temporary truce for May 8–9 linked to Victory Day celebrations but did not formally agree to Ukraine’s broader ceasefire initiative.
On the front lines, Ukrainian military personnel reported that fighting remained intense.
“The enemy continued to carry out infantry raids and attempts to storm our positions,” one Ukrainian officer told AFP on condition of anonymity, adding that Ukrainian forces were responding to attacks “in kind.”
Another commander described the situation by saying: “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.”
Ukrainian authorities said at least one person was killed in overnight strikes, while a Russian attack on a kindergarten in the border region of Sumy Region reportedly killed a security guard.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry said it intercepted 53 Ukrainian drones overnight, although it did not specify whether the attacks occurred after Kyiv’s proposed ceasefire was supposed to take effect.
Late Tuesday, authorities installed by Moscow in Russian-occupied Crimea said Ukrainian drone attacks killed five people.
The latest escalation comes as both sides intensify long-range strikes deep inside enemy territory. Ukraine on Tuesday reportedly struck the Russian city of Cheboksary, located hundreds of miles from the Ukrainian border, killing two people as said by Russian officials.
The attacks have heightened security concerns in Moscow ahead of the May 9 parade. Russian authorities have reportedly reduced the display of military hardware for the event and introduced intermittent internet shutdowns across the capital.
Zelensky mocked the measures, saying Russian authorities “fear drones may buzz over Red Square.”
Efforts to negotiate an end to the war — now in its fifth year and considered Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II — have shown little progress. Diplomatic attention has also increasingly shifted toward the escalating crisis involving Iran and the broader Middle East.
Moscow continues to demand that Ukraine withdraw from four regions Russia claims to have annexed, conditions Kyiv has repeatedly rejected as unacceptable.
Header image: Kyiv said Russia attacked eastern and southern Ukraine with more than 100 drones overnight © IRYNA RYBAKOVA / The 93rd Kholodnyi Yar Separate/AFP
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