By ILLIA NOVIKOV, Associated Press
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia and Ukraine both reported attacks on their forces Thursday on the first day of a 72-hour ceasefire called by Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Ukrainian lawmakers unanimously approved a landmark minerals deal with the U.S.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha accused Russia of violating its own ceasefire 734 times between midnight and midday Thursday. He called the ceasefire a “farce” on the social media platform X.
The unilateral ceasefire coincides with Russia’s biggest secular holiday, the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany. Kyiv has pressed for a longer-term ceasefire.
Meanwhile at the Kremlin, Putin welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping, whom Putin earlier described as Russia’s “main guest” at Friday’s Victory Day festivities. Xi arrived Wednesday for a four-day visit.
The Ukrainian parliament’s ratification of the minerals deal marked a key step in a deal that will allow Washington access to Ukraine’s largely untapped minerals, deepen strategic ties and create a joint investment fund with the U.S. for the reconstruction of Ukraine.
“This document is not merely a legal construct, it is the foundation of a new model of interaction with a key strategic partner,” Ukraine’s economics minister, Yuliia Svyrydenko, wrote on X.
The minerals agreement was approved by all 338 members of parliament, far surpassing the required 226 votes, Ukrainian lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak wrote on his Telegram account. No lawmaker abstained.
In a statement, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked everyone involved in the deal and said he expected the ratified agreement to be submitted to his office soon.
“Once the legal procedures are complete, we will be able to begin establishing the fund,” he said.
Two more technical agreements will have to be developed and signed by both sides, Svyrydenko said. Those deals include “a limited partnership agreement and an agreement that essentially determines how the fund will function,” she told reporters ahead of the vote.
She said the U.S. expects the work on the documents to take “weeks, not months.”
U.S. President Donald Trump said he planned to talk with Zelenskyy later Thursday following the ratification.
Russian bombs hit Ukraine in first hours of ceasefire
In the opening hours of Moscow’s ceasefire, Russian bombs struck northeast Ukraine, killing at least one civilian, Ukrainian officials said. Artillery assaults took place across the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, although with less intensity than in the previous 24 hours, officials said.
Sybiha said Russia carried out 63 assaults along the front line, 23 of which were still ongoing as of midday. Ukraine responded “appropriately,” he said, and shared information about the attacks with the U.S, the European Union and others.
“We will not let Putin fool anyone when he does not even keep his own word,” Sybiha said.
Russian attacks also took place near Chasiv Yar in the Donetsk region, Oleh Petrasiuk, a spokesman with Ukraine’s 24th Mechanized Brigade, told The Associated Press by phone.
One person died and two were wounded when Russian forces dropped guided bombs on residential areas near the border in the northeast Sumy region, the regional prosecutor’s office said.
Large-scale missile and drone attacks, which have been a near-daily occurrence in Ukraine in recent weeks, abated for a short time, with no assaults recorded since 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, the Ukrainian air force said.
Zelenskyy had previously cast doubt on the ceasefire, calling it “manipulation” as U.S.-led peace efforts stalled. “For some reason, everyone is supposed to wait until May 8 before ceasing fire — just to provide Putin with silence for his parade,” Zelenskyy said.
In March, the United States proposed a 30-day truce in the war, which Ukraine accepted, but the Kremlin has held out for ceasefire terms more to its liking.
The Russian Defense Ministry accused Ukrainian forces of attacking its positions and said Russian forces would continue to “mirror” Ukraine’s actions during the Kremlin’s ceasefire.
The Russian regions of Belgorod, Lipetsk, Orenburg, Ryazan and Tambov came under a drone-threat alert overnight, but there were no reports of any drones being shot down or intercepted. Russia’s civil aviation authority Rosaviatsia briefly imposed restrictions on flights to and from the airport in Nizhny Novgorod.
Putin praises relations with Xi
In welcoming Xi, Putin said that “the brotherhood of arms between our peoples, which developed during the harsh war years, is one of the fundamental foundations of modern Russian-Chinese relations.”
He added that Moscow and Beijing were developing ties “for the benefit of the peoples of both countries and not against anyone.”
Xi, in turn, said that “history and reality have fully proved that the continuous development and deepening of China-Russia relations is a necessity for the friendship between the two peoples from generation to generation.” He also called for safeguarding “international fairness and justice.”
Putin and Xi have met over 40 times and developed strong personal ties as both countries face tensions with the West.
China offered robust diplomatic support to Moscow after its 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine and has emerged as a top market for Russian oil and gas, helping to fill the Kremlin’s war coffers. Russia has relied on China as the main source of machinery and electronics to keep its military running after Western sanctions curtailed high-tech supplies.
Associated Press journalist Evgeniy Maloletka contributed to this report.
