Russian President Vladimir Putin is prepared to order his military to halt attacks on Ukraine for a single day on election day, provided Kyiv organizes a national vote, according to the Kremlin.
Kremlin Outlines One-Day Ceasefire Condition
The offer was announced by Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, who emphasized that he was conveying the message with full responsibility. Speaking to reporters via the Russian state agency TASS, Peskov stated that the Russian leader would issue the directive as supreme commander of the armed forces if Ukraine genuinely decides to hold an election.
The proposed suspension is strictly limited to the single day of voting and does not constitute a broader truce or an end to the ongoing war. Officials in Moscow claimed that the Ukrainian leadership has no actual intention of conducting a vote, repeating the stance that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s official term in office expired on May 20, 2024.
Wartime Law Postpones Vote Pending Security Guarantees
Under Ukrainian law, presidential elections are postponed due to the existing state of war, which prohibits voting while emergency wartime measures remain active. Zelenskyy previously indicated a readiness to arrange elections within 60 to 90 days if the United States and European allies provide necessary security guarantees. Putin previously addressed election security during his annual Direktna linija
conference in December 2025, stating then that he was ready to consider ensuring security in Ukraine on a voting day.
Meanwhile, combat operations continue across multiple fronts. The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that troops targeted energy infrastructure facilities in the Vinnitsa, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kharkiv regions overnight. In diplomatic exchanges, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that Moscow neither wants nor plans a war with Europe, though he warned that any European-initiated conflict would draw a response described as different and very short.