A360
Key Takeaways✦ Atlas AI
01
Three-day ceasefire initiated May 9.
02
1,000 prisoners exchanged by each side.
03
Kinetic activities suspended during truce.
Atlas AI
A three-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine began on May 9, a pause both sides have confirmed that is intended to allow the exchange of 1,000 prisoners from each country. Russia has said the truce includes a suspension of “kinetic activity” and it coincides with Russia’s annual Victory Day commemorations.
The arrangement follows a period of intensified hostilities, including Russian aerial attacks on Ukrainian urban areas. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had earlier called for a unilateral 24-hour ceasefire in exchange for a reciprocal pause during Victory Day.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine’s position was driven by humanitarian considerations, including the return of prisoners of war, rather than the symbolism of events in Moscow.
The prisoner swap is a significant humanitarian outcome of the agreement and reflects a longstanding focus of negotiations between the two countries. The temporary cessation of hostilities is intended to allow for an orderly exchange of detainees during the three-day period.
