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Russia Attacks on 1st Day of Ceasefire 05/08 06:18
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) -- Russia struck northeastern Ukraine on Thursday in the
opening hours of a 72-hour ceasefire called by Russian President Vladimir
Putin, killing one person, Ukrainian officials said.
The unilateral ceasefire coincides with the celebrations in Moscow for the
80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany in World War II, Russia's biggest
secular holiday. Kyiv has pressed for a longer-term ceasefire.
Putin on Thursday welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping in the Kremlin. Xi,
who Putin earlier described as "our main guest" at Friday's Victory Day
festivities, arrived in Russia on Wednesday for a four-day visit.
Russian forces dropped guided air bombs on residential areas near the border
in the northeast Sumy region, killing one and wounded two people, the regional
prosecutor's office said. Ukraine's air force also said at least one missile
hit the Sumy region until early morning on Thursday.
Large-scale missile and drone attacks, which have been a near-daily
occurrence in Ukraine in recent weeks, were not recorded since 8:30 p.m.
Wednesday, the air force said. Smaller-scale Russian attacks persisted
elsewhere in the country closer to the front line, causing civilian casualties,
it said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy cast doubt on the ceasefire, calling
it "manipulation" as U.S.-led peace efforts stalled. "For some reason, everyone
is supposed to wait until May 8 before ceasing fire -- just to provide Putin
with silence for his parade," Zelenskyy said.
In March, the United States proposed a 30-day truce in the war, which
Ukraine accepted, but the Kremlin has held out for ceasefire terms more to its
liking.
In Russia, officials said that the regions of Belgorod, Lipetsk, Orenburg,
Ryazan and Tambov came under a drone threat alert overnight, but there were no
reports of any drones being shot down or intercepted. Russia's civil aviation
authority Rosaviatsia also briefly imposed restrictions on flights to and from
the airport in Nizhny Novgorod.
In welcoming Xi, Putin said that "the brotherhood of arms between our
peoples, which developed during the harsh war years, is one of the fundamental
foundations of modern Russian-Chinese relations of comprehensive partnership
and strategic cooperation."
He added that Moscow and Beijing were developing ties "for the benefit of
the peoples of both countries and not against anyone."
Xi, in turn, said that "history and reality have fully proved that the
continuous development and deepening of China-Russia relations is a necessity
for the friendship between the two peoples from generation to generation." He
also called for safeguarding "international fairness and justice."
Putin and Xi have met over 40 times and developed strong personal ties that
bolstered the countries' "strategic partnership" as both face tensions with the
West.
China has offered robust diplomatic support to Moscow after its 2022
full-scale invasion of Ukraine and has emerged as a top market for Russian oil
and gas, helping fill the Kremlin's war coffers. Russia has relied on China as
the main source of machinery and electronics to keep its military machine
running after Western sanctions curtailed high-tech supplies.
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