UKRAINE - The temporary ceasefire in Ukraine's Kherson region — described as the longest truce of the war — was set to expire Sunday evening with no extension announced.
Brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump and limited to Kherson only, the pause began Tuesday. It was the "biggest de-escalation since 2022," according to one Ukrainian lawmaker, with neither side reporting violations.
The truce allowed a humanitarian mission to the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky. It comes as the war, sparked by Russia's 2022 full-scale invasion, grinds through its fifth year, having destroyed parts of eastern and southern Ukraine, killed hundreds of thousands, and displaced millions.
Kherson residents described it as a "breath of fresh air." Gardener Volodymyr Omeltchenko, 38, said: "We have to use this time to get things done... We're pruning the rose bushes for winter."
But a Ukrainian officer, speaking anonymously, warned fighting could be "worse than before" on resumption. He said Russian forces across the Dnipro River used the calm to bring up troops, move ammunition, and surveil Ukrainian positions with drones.
Fighting continued elsewhere:
● Russian refinery hit: Russia said a drone struck an "industrial enterprise" east of Moscow overnight. Ukrainian media said it was the Kstovo oil refinery, "one of Russia's largest," producing fuel and lubricants. Kyiv says such strikes are fair retaliation for Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy sites.
● US pressure: President Donald Trump has pressed Kyiv to stop the strikes, blaming them for rising diesel costs that analysts attribute to the Iran war.
● Blackouts: Ukraine's energy ministry reported fresh outages Sunday, including in Kyiv, after Russian strikes on energy infrastructure.
● Lugansk: Russian-installed authorities said Ukrainian strikes killed four people since Saturday evening. Russia denies targeting civilians.
Russia now occupies about a fifth of Ukraine — Crimea annexed in 2014, most of Donetsk and Lugansk in the east, and large parts of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson in the south.
US-mediated Russia-Ukraine talks are set to resume this month after being effectively frozen since the US and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran in February. (Bssnews)
