'The front is noisy' — for Ukraine's soldiers, Russia's Victory Day 'ceasefire' is yet another sham

Moscow's self-declared truce which came into force at midnight on May 8 is not being felt on the front lines, Ukrainian soldiers have told the Kyiv Independent, reporting numerous cases of Russian military activity throughout the day.

"There is no truce. There is shelling, artillery, drone and FPV (bomb) drops," Petro Kuzyk, a battalion commander at the National Guard, said.

The Kremlin announced the measure on April 28, claiming all military actions would halt on May 8 to midnight on May 11 to mark Russia's Victory Day on May 9.

Ukraine was not consulted on the proposal, and Russia provided no details of how the ceasefire would be implemented or monitored.

President Volodymyr Zelensky described the Russian truce as a "theatrical performance," and experts who spoke to the Kyiv Independent said Moscow's unilateral declaration is simply not how ceasefires are conducted.

"Ceasefires have to be negotiated so both sides agree on terms otherwise neither is bound by them," retired Australian Army Major-General Mick Ryan told the Kyiv Independent, adding the Kremlin's truce lacked "clear terms" as well as any "monitoring arrangements."

It also followed Russia's now nearly two months-long refusal to accept a U.S.-proposed full, 30-day ceasefire to which Ukraine agreed back on March 11.

"This is not a ceasefire," a special forces sniper with the callsign "Bart," fighting in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, told the Kyiv Independent, adding: "Just now there was an air strike on us."

"It's been the fourth day of (Russian) assaults and force accumulation along the front line, and their aviation is working every day," he added.

In Donetsk Oblast, deputy commander of the drone unit in the 14th Separate Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Regiment of the Unmanned Systems Forces with the callsign "Taip," told the Kyiv Independent it was a "little quieter for now but not by much."

He confirmed that Russian drones were still highly active in the area.

Myroslav Hai, an officer Ukrainian army, told the Kyiv Independent he'd seen no changes at the front. "There are local battles, local shooting," he said, adding: "I've been a soldier or a volunteer for more than 10 years — the longest ceasefire I remember lasted six hours, in 2017."

In the north of the country in Sumy Oblast, a soldier with the callsign "Bandera" described the front lines as "noisy."

"Just like the last time (during the "Easter truce"), the FPV drones are still flying," he said, though he noted a reduction in reconnaissance drones.

In a report posted on Facebook on the afternoon of May 8, Ukraine's General Staff of the Armed Forces reported 117 "combat clashes" since the truce came into effect.

In Ukraine's cities, May 8 was undoubtedly quieter. As of 8:00 a.m. no missile attacks or drones were recorded in Ukrainian airspace, a marked difference from the hundreds of kamikaze drones Russia has launched against the country every night for months now.

Just the night before, Kyiv was attacked with ballistic missiles and drones, just the latest in a series of devastating strikes against civilians that have only escalated this year, despite the U.S.- peace process.

But there were still civilian casualties reported on May 8 — in Kharkiv Oblast, women aged 18, 30, and 58 were injured when a Russian FPV drone struck their car on the morning of May 8.

According to Viacheslav Zadorenko, head of the Derkhachiv Military Administration, the women thought the ceasefire was in place, so they went to the garden to plant potatoes.

And in Sumy Oblast, Russian forces hit a house with an aerial bomb, killing a 55-year-old woman at around 3 a.m. local time in the Mykolaiv community. The woman's 24-year-old son was injured in the attack.

Russian President Vladimir Putin had cynical reasons to declare the ceasefire — with Ukraine repeatedly demonstrating its ability to strike Moscow with attack drones, the Kremlin would be conscious of the possible embarrassment of cancelling the event.

The celebrations, which mark the Soviet Union's role in defeating Nazi Germany in World War II, are one of the country's biggest public events of the year and a key part of Putin's propaganda efforts to justify aggression against what the Kremlin falsely describes as "Nazis" in Ukraine.

"It is ironic that the fascists pay so much attention to the day of victory over fascism," the soldier with the call sign "Bandera" told the Kyiv Independent.

"We are looking forward to it, and hopefully, preparing gifts."

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The Kyiv IndependentKarol Luczka