International News
Putin Orders Three-Day Truce In May, Ukraine Questions Delay
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered a truce with Ukraine on May 8-10 to coincide with Moscow’s World War II commemorations, drawing ire from Ukraine which demanded Moscow pause hostilities immediately.
The announcement came as the United States scaled up efforts to broker an end to the three-year conflict, warning this week would be “critical” for determining whether peace was possible.
Putin last month rejected a US proposal for a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire while US President Donald Trump has threatened to “pass” on peace talks if he does not see progress soon.
Trump’s spokeswoman said Monday that he wanted to see “a permanent ceasefire” and that the White House chief was becoming “increasingly frustrated” with the leaders of both Russia and Ukraine.
“The Russian side is declaring a ceasefire during the 80th anniversary of Victory Day, from midnight on May 7-8 to midnight on May 10-11. All combat operations will be suspended during this period,” the Kremlin said in a statement.
The Kremlin said it expected Kyiv to issue a similar order and that it stood ready to respond to any violations of the possible halt in fighting.
Putin made a similar order to stop combat over Easter — a truce that both sides accused the other of violating hundreds of times but did lead to a temporary reduction in fighting.
Ukraine said that it wanted an immediate truce with Russia for “at least 30 days”, asking why Moscow would delay a three-day pause in hostilities to May.
“If Russia truly wants peace, it must cease fire immediately. Why wait until May 8th?” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga wrote on X.
Since launching its Ukraine offensive in February 2022, Russia has seized large parts of four Ukrainian regions and claimed them as its own, in addition to Crimea, which it annexed in 2014.
‘Tapping Me Along’
Putin’s order of a ceasefire comes at the beginning of what the United States indicated would be a crucial week that could determine how long Washington keeps trying to broker a deal.
After a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr 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,” Trump had said on Truth Social.
Russian missiles have killed dozens of civilians over the last month in large-scale strikes on Zelensky’s home city of Kryvyi Rig, the northeastern city of Sumy and the capital Kyiv.
Russia had earlier on Monday said it was ready to negotiate directly with Ukraine but that recognition of its claims over five 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 while European officials have warned that accepting Moscow’s demands set a dangerous precedent that could lead to future Russian aggression.
Zelensky said last Friday that Ukraine would “not legally recognise any temporarily occupied territories” and has previously called Moscow’s demand for Kyiv to demilitarise “incomprehensible”.
Kursk Retaken
Trump, who boasted before his inauguration he could halt Russia’s assault on Ukraine within “24 hours”, launched a diplomatic offensive to stop the fighting after taking office in January.
But the White House has voiced frustration with both sides, as the conflict that has devastated swathes of eastern Ukraine and killed tens of thousands of people drags on.
Trump is “increasingly frustrated with leaders of both countries”, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.
Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks on the fighting since the start of Moscow’s offensive in 2022.
Early Monday, a Russian attack on a Ukrainian village near the frontline city of Pokrovsk killed a married couple and another local resident, regional prosecutors said.
Meanwhile, Russia over the weekend announced it had taken full control of its Kursk region with the help of North Korean troops, more than eight months after Kyiv launched a cross-border ground assault.
Putin thanked North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Monday for help with the operation, which has denied Kyiv a key bargaining chip in future talks with Moscow.
AFP
Jeremy Doku insisted Manchester “will keep on fighting” in the Premier League title race despite their “painful” draw with Everton on Monday.
City drew 3-3 with the Toffees at Hill Dickinson Stadium, with Doku scoring a 97th-minute equaliser, having also scored the opening goal.
Doku’s equaliser (96:49) is City’s third-latest goal on record (since 2006-07) in a Premier League game after John Stones’ strike against Arsenal in September 2024 (97:14) and Gabriel Jesus’ goal against Everton in February 2019 (96:52).
Doku has had a hand in six goals across his last five games for City in all competitions (four goals, two assists), as many as in his previous 22 games combined (one goal, five assists).
The Belgian also created the most chances in the match against Everton (four), completed the most dribbles (5/7) and won the most duels (14/19).
City avoided defeat in a Premier League game despite trailing by 2+ goals as late as the 82nd minute for the first time since March 2012 against Sunderland (3-3).
They went on to win the league title in 2011-12, and Doku believes City can still beat Arsenal to the trophy this season.
“First half, we played well and created a lot of chances. We know if we don’t score those chances, it is going to get difficult at the end,” said Doku.
“Obviously, they are at their own stadium, they create chances, and they are dangerous, and they scored two goals, but I think we gave them the game.
“Good that we came back because one point is not bad in games like this.
“We will see. It feels painful now. There is still a lot of games to go. We lost two points, but we know that one point can be important at the end.
“We will keep on fighting. We owe it to ourselves and to our fans.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Nigerians interested in repatriation from South Africa will be responsible for the cost of their return trip to Nigeria.
The ministry’s spokesperson, Kimiebi Ebienfa, stated this during a press briefing on Monday in Abuja.
The briefing came shortly after a closed-door meeting between the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dunoma Ahmed, and the South African Acting High Commissioner, Lesoli Machele.
Mr Ebienfa said the process will be self-funded and not state-funded, as it is a voluntary decision that the Nigerian government will only facilitate and coordinate.
In the recent past, such reparations have been sponsored by Nigerian airline owners, particularly Allen Onyema, the CEO of Air Peace.
The Nigerian government, on Sunday, indicated its readiness to repatriate its citizens from South Africa due to xenophobic violence.
The effort primarily targets Nigerians who feel threatened by the xenophobic violence and tension in parts of South Africa, as the protests against black immigrants in the country continue. Two Nigerians were killed last month.
Since the announcement, about 130 Nigerians in South Africa have expressed a willingness to return home voluntarily.
Mr Ebienfa stated that the return of the Nigerians depends on their financial capacity, as they would be expected to fund their trip back home individually.
He said, “Those willing to leave are expected to approach the high commission and, given that their decision is voluntary, have the resources to fund their return to Nigeria.”
The government will not “provide an aircraft from Nigeria to convey them.”
He also noted that the speed of the repatriation process will be determined by the availability of funds.
“Yes, 130 as of this morning have registered, but actualisation would be required to have their flight ticket to move back to Nigeria.”
Mr Ebienfa also explained that Nigerians who have so far expressed interest are motivated either by concerns about threats to their lives or by fear of arrest by South African law enforcement agencies.
“There are two groups of Nigerians who want to come back. One group feels the country is not safe for them and wants to come. They have all their papers intact.
“Then there is also the second group that has travel document violations or resident permit violations. And instead of running away from law enforcement, they are appealing that the government facilitate their movement back to Nigeria,” he explained.
However, he noted that the process is still being worked out and that the government would step in to provide aircraft or other needed assistance if tensions rise and the situation becomes more volatile.
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