Sawt Falasteen - Putin orders three-day truce amid new US warnings

Before Putin's announcement, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio held new talks with Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, having declared that this will be a crucial week in a US decision on whether to halt its peace efforts.

The Kremlin said Putin had ordered a "ceasefire" for the 80th anniversary of Victory Day from May 8 to May 10. "All combat operations will be suspended during this period," it said in a statement.

The Kremlin said the halt to fighting would be for humanitarian reasons, as well as the anniversary, and that it expected Kyiv to issue a similar order.

Putin also ordered a ceasefire for Easter, when each side accused the other of mass violations though it did lead to a temporary reduction in fighting.

Ukraine has demanded an immediate ceasefire lasting at least 30 days and Zelensky said in his daily address to the nation: "Now there's a new attempt at manipulation: for some reason, everyone has to wait until May 8."

"If Russia truly wants peace, it must cease fire immediately. Why wait until May 8th?" Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga wrote on X.

The White House said Monday that US President Donald Trump wants "a permanent ceasefire" and is becoming "increasingly frustrated" with the leaders of Russia and Ukraine.

After a meeting with Zelensky at Pope Francis's funeral on Saturday, Trump questioned whether the Russian leader was serious about peace.

"There was no reason for Putin to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days. It makes me think that maybe he doesn't want to stop the war, he's just tapping me along," said Trump, who has also had clashes with Ukrainian leader.

Rubio told the Russian foreign minister on Sunday that United States is committed to working to end the "senseless war", State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said.

She said Rubio spoke to Lavrov about "the next steps in Russia-Ukraine peace talks and the need to end the war now."

Trump has already said that the United States could abandon its peace efforts and Rubio indicated again on Sunday how US patience is wearing thin over the conflict.

"This is going to be a very critical week," he told NBC television, adding that Washington might prefer to focus on "other issues".

Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks on the fighting since the start of Moscow's offensive. Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, has become the focus of efforts to bring the two sides together.

Trump said Monday that he thought Zelensky was ready to "give up" Crimea, though the Ukraine leader has ruled this out several times.

-- Macron's 'pressure' --

Russia said Monday that it was ready to negotiate directly with Ukraine but that recognition of its claims over Ukrainian regions including Crimea were "imperative" to resolving the conflict.

"The ball is not in our court. So far, Kyiv has not demonstrated its ability to negotiate," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Brazilian newspaper O Globo.

Ukraine has denounced Russia's annexations as an illegal land grab and says it will never recognise them. European officials have warned that accepting Moscow's demands set a dangerous precedent that could lead to future Russian aggression.

Zelensky said last week that Ukraine would "not legally recognise any temporarily occupied territories" and has previously called Moscow's demand for Kyiv to demilitarise "incomprehensible".

France's President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that Western nations would "increase pressure on Russia" over the next 10 days and the next two weeks would be "crucial" in trying to start a ceasefire.

Macron told Paris Match magazine he had urged Trump in recent discussions to be "tougher" with the Russian president.

The French president added that he believed he had "convinced the Americans of the possibility of an escalation of threats, and potentially sanctions" against Moscow.

Putin on Monday thanked North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for the help of North Korean forces in retaking territory from Ukrainian forces in Russia's Kursk region.

C.Hamad--SF-PST