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Russian President Vladimir Putin declared an Easter truce in Ukraine, the Kremlin press service reported on Saturday, over three years after Moscow launched a full-scale offensive on the neighboring country.

The unilateral break in fighting is scheduled to last from Saturday evening until midnight on Sunday local time.

"During a meeting in the Kremlin, the commander-in-chief heard a report by Valery Gerasimov, chief of the general staff of the Russian armed forces, on the situation on the line of contact and said that the Russian side stops all hostilities from 1800 [1500 GMT] on April 19 to 0000 on April 21," the Kremlin's official Telegram channel said.

Putin: Troops should be ready for 'truce violations'

Putin said Russia "assumed" that Ukraine would follow suit. He also warned Russian troops should be ready to repel possible "provocations by the enemy."

According to the statement on Telegram, Putin said the truce would show how sincere Kyiv was in its willingness to "participate in the process of peace talks aimed at eliminating the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis."

However, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said "Putin's word cannot be trusted." Sybiha added that Kyiv stands by the earlier deal for a 30-day truce which was pitched by the US last month. Moscow had rejected the US suggestion. 

The Russian Defense Ministry said it had instructed all group commanders in Ukraine on the ceasefire.

It said in a statement that Moscow's troops would adhere to the truce provided it is "mutually respected" by Ukraine. 

Disbelief in Ukraine

DW's Kyiv correspondent Nick Connolly also said there was considerable skepticism in Ukraine regarding Putin's announcement.

"No celebrations here yet; no one believes this is real. Currently, Russian drones still attacking Kyiv region 30 mins before Putin's ceasefire," he said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also questioned the veracity of the announcement, writing on X, formerly Twitter, that Russian drones in the skies over Ukraine showed Moscow's true attitude to Easter and people's lives.

"As for yet another attempt by Putin to play with human lives — at this moment, air raid alerts are spreading across Ukraine," Zelenskyy said. "At 17:15, Russian attack drones were detected in our skies. Ukrainian air defense and aviation have already begun working to protect us. Shahed drones in our skies reveal Putin's true attitude toward Easter and towards human life."    

The ceasefire offer by Russia comes as US President Donald Trump's administration has said it is prepared to abandon truce negotiations in Ukraine in the coming days. 

Russian political scientist Ekaterina Schulmann posted on Telegram that the offer could make the US "get rid of the feeling that nothing is happening at all" when it comes to Ukraine.

Russia, Ukraine engaged in fresh prisoner swap

Meanwhile on Saturday, Russia and Ukraine are reported to have taken part in an exchange of prisoners of war. 

The Russian Defense Ministry said it had received 246 Russian soldiers from Ukraine. Meanwhile, Russia said it handed over 246 Ukrainian prisoners to Ukraine.

Russia also said it handed over 31 wounded prisoners of war to Ukraine, with Ukraine then handing over 15 wounded Russian prisoners to Russia. 

Zelenskyy, for his part, confirmed that 277 Ukrainian "warriors" had returned home after being taken prisoner by Russia.  

In addition, Russia's top general Valery Gerasimov said that the Russian military had taken back 99% of the Kursk region from Ukraine.

Ukraine did not respond to Gerasimov's comment. Ukraine launched an incursion into Kursk in August in hopes that it could be used as land swaps with Russia during negotiations.   

Edited by: Darko Janjevic