Kiev yet to respond to Russia's May ceasefire proposal — Kremlin spokesman

MOSCOW, April 29. /TASS/. The Kiev regime has not yet provided an official response to the Victory Day ceasefire announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"It was President Putin that made a gesture of goodwill yesterday by announcing that a truce will be declared in honor of Victory Day. We haven’t heard a reaction from the Kiev regime. It’s hard to understand at this point if the Kiev regime plans to observe it or not," the Russian presidential spokesman said.

He also pointed out that Putin had highlighted Russia’s readiness to engage in negotiations with Ukraine without preconditions. Kiev has as yet failed to respond to that proposal, too. "In such a situation, the talk about the need to increase some pressure only once again confirms that unfortunately, European capitals still prefer to focus on continuing the war," Peskov noted. "In contrast, we are focused on the ongoing efforts to take the process down the path of a peaceful settlement," he stressed.

Earlier, Russia declared a ceasefire from 12:00 a.m. Moscow time on May 8 (9:00 p.m. GMT on May 7) to 12:00 a.m. Moscow time on May 11 (9:00 p.m. GMT on May 10). Russia expects Kiev to follow suit but is determined to give a tit-for-tat response should Ukrainian forces violate the truce.