At the same time, the Russian Ministry of Defense threatened Kyiv with a "massive missile strike" if it violated the unilateral ceasefire declared by Moscow on May 8 and 9. For the first time since 2008, the victory parade in Red Square will not include any military equipment.

Russia declared a unilateral ceasefire with Ukraine between May 8 and 9, on the occasion of the commemorations in Moscow of the victory over Nazi Germany in 1945, while threatening to launch a "massive missile strike" on Kyiv if Ukraine were to violate this truce.

Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed this pause in hostilities last week during a telephone conversation with Donald Trump.

"In accordance with the decision of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces, Vladimir Putin, a ceasefire is declared for May 8 and 9, 2026 (...) We hope that the Ukrainian side will do the same," the Russian Ministry of Defense said in a message posted on the state-backed MAX messaging app.

"If the Kyiv regime attempts to disrupt the celebration of the 81st anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War, the Russian armed forces will launch a massive retaliatory missile attack on the center of Kyiv ," the statement continued, warning that, in this case, civilians as well as diplomatic representatives should leave the Ukrainian capital "in time."

In a message posted on X on Monday evening, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced a Ukrainian ceasefire that would be implemented earlier than the one proposed by Russia, while stating that the Kremlin's initiative had not been officially communicated to Kyiv.

"We believe that human life has a value incomparably greater than any commemoration. That is why we are announcing a period of silence starting at 00:00 on the night of May 5-6," he wrote.

"It is time for Russian leaders to take concrete steps to end their war, especially since the Russian Ministry of Defense believes it cannot hold a parade in Moscow without Ukraine's goodwill ," the Ukrainian president added.

The Russian Ministry of Defense indicated last week that no military equipment would be displayed at this year's annual parade, due to fears of long-range Ukrainian drone attacks.

Monday's deadly strikes

Meanwhile, a Russian missile attack killed at least nine people in Ukraine on Monday.

A Russian ballistic missile targeted the town of Merefa, near Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city, killing seven civilians and injuring dozens, regional authorities said.

The governor of the Kharkiv region, Oleg Synegubov, initially reported five deaths, before clarifying that two more men had succumbed to their injuries in hospital.

A crater is visible in a residential area after a Russian missile attack in Merefa, on May 4, 2026.   AP Photo

The other victims are two men and three women, the official said, adding that a two-year-old child was among the injured, but had not been hospitalized.

The strike targeted "civilian infrastructure in a city located quite far from the front line ," he added.

For several months, Russian forces have been focusing on attempts to seize territory in the Kharkiv region, from which they were repelled by Ukrainian forces in 2022.

Furthermore, the governor of the southern region of Zaporizhzhia, Ivan Fedorov, indicated that a Russian strike had killed two people in the village of Vilnyansk.

"Unfortunately, a married couple was killed: a 51-year-old man and a 62-year-old woman ," he said.

He added that their 31-year-old son was injured in the attack, along with three other people.

Vilnyansk is located near the regional capital of Zaporizhzhia, towards which Russian forces have advanced in recent months.

A woman weeps as she looks at a dead driver in a damaged car following a Russian missile attack in Merefa, May 4, 2026.   AP Photo

In Russia, the governor of the Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, indicated that a Ukrainian drone had killed a civilian in a border area.

He added that the attack also injured seven other people, including a 10-year-old boy.

US-led negotiations to try to end the conflict have been overshadowed by the war in Iran, while deadly attacks have increased in recent weeks.