President Donald Trump said Russia and Ukraine have agreed to his request for a three-day ceasefire and an exchange of prisoners, with both sides confirming the deal. Trump said he made the request directly to the two presidents and described the agreement as a pause in hostilities that could mark “the beginning of the end” of what he called a long, deadly war. He said the temporary halt would give both countries a period of time “where they’re not going to be killing people.”
Trump announced earlier that the ceasefire would run Saturday through Monday, with May 9 through May 11 falling during Russia’s Victory Day holiday. Victory Day commemorates the victory over Nazi Germany in World War II, and Trump said the timing reflected that shared historical context between Russia and Ukraine. He said the arrangement includes a suspension of all kinetic activity and an exchange of 1,000 prisoners by each side.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Yuri Ushakov, a foreign affairs adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin, both confirmed the agreement, according to the account relayed by Trump. Trump said talks continue about ending the war that began in February 2022, adding that negotiations were getting “closer and closer” each day. He also said he had asked for a “little period of time” during which killings would stop.
The announcement came after earlier ceasefire efforts had unraveled. Russia had announced a ceasefire for Friday and Saturday that quickly unraveled, with both sides blaming each other for continued fighting, in a pattern that had also played out when Ukraine’s own unilateral ceasefire earlier in the week collapsed. Trump’s new proposal set a tighter window around May 9-11, rather than a longer, open-ended pause.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine’s decision on how to engage with the discussions was shaped in part by the prospect of freeing its prisoners of war, a demand that Ukraine has emphasized throughout the conflict. Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram that “Red Square matters less to us than the lives of Ukrainian prisoners of war who can be brought home,” describing Red Square as the location where Russia holds its Victory Day military parade.
After Zelenskyy released that message, Ukraine issued a formal presidential decree “authorizing” Russia to hold the parade and declaring Red Square off-limits for Ukrainian strikes for the duration of the event. The framing of the decree appeared designed to underscore Kyiv’s position that it can target Moscow while publicly tying Ukrainian restraint to the ceasefire terms.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov later dismissed the decree, calling it a “silly joke” and telling reporters, “We don’t need anyone’s permission to be proud of our Victory Day.” Zelenskyy also said the deal was reached through a U.S.-mediated process and thanked Trump and the American team for what he described as effective diplomatic engagement, while also saying Ukraine expected Washington to hold Russia to the terms of the agreement.
Zelenskyy said he had instructed his team to prepare everything necessary for the exchange without delay. The announcement also drew immediate reaction from the United Nations: U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres welcomed the ceasefire and prisoner exchange announcement, according to his spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric, and reiterated calls for an “unconditional and lasting ceasefire” as a first step toward “a just, sustainable and comprehensive peace.”
Trump’s comments came hours after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio struck a more cautious tone about negotiations, saying U.S. mediation efforts have not yet produced a “fruitful outcome.” Rubio told reporters at the end of a visit to Rome and the Vatican that while the United States was prepared to play whatever role it could to bring about a peaceful diplomatic resolution, “those efforts have stagnated,” adding that the U.S. would stand ready if circumstances changed.