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Russia's Victory Day truce announcement of 4 May
Summary
A look back at the Russian defence ministry's declaration of a 8–9 May ceasefire and the strikes, diplomacy and legal moves that preceded it.
What did a short ceasefire announcement signal amid a war of refinery fires and record drone attacks? On 4 May 2026, the Russian defence ministry declared a truce running from 8 to 9 May, the dates around Victory Day.
The announcement followed an offer made a few days earlier. On 29 April, Russian president Vladimir Putin proposed a ceasefire for Victory Day on 9 May during a phone call with U.S. president Donald Trump. The defence ministry's declaration of 4 May put dates on that proposal.
A fortnight of strikes on Russian energy sites
The truce was announced against a backdrop of intense fighting. On 28 April, the fire at the Tuapse oil terminal in Russia grew larger after the third Ukrainian drone strike on the facility in two weeks. Later accounts describe the Tuapse attacks as running from 16 April to 27 May 2026, aimed at reducing Russian oil revenue, and say they damaged the refinery and terminal, a major oil export hub, and forced them to suspend operations.
On 29 April, a Ukrainian SBU drone struck an oil refinery near Perm, in Perm Krai, causing a large fire. The same day, a Ukrainian drone strike on a passenger bus in Voznesenovka, Belgorod Oblast, killed three people and injured eight.
The air war ran in both directions. On 28 April, Ukraine reported intercepting more than 33,000 Russian drones in March, the highest monthly total since the start of the full-scale invasion.
Diplomacy and the legal track
The ceasefire offer sat within a long series of peace efforts. Later accounts of those talks describe the sides' positions as far apart: Putin seeking recognition of occupied land as Russian, guarantees that Ukraine will never join NATO, curtailment of Ukraine's military and the lifting of sanctions; Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy seeking a ceasefire, full withdrawal of Russian troops, the return of prisoners and kidnapped children, prosecution of Russian leaders for war crimes, and security guarantees.
The legal track moved in parallel. On 1 May, the European Parliament adopted a resolution supporting a special tribunal to prosecute Russian leaders for crimes related to the war, and calling for sanctions to remain until a peace agreement is fully implemented. The tribunal concept is described as an ad hoc body for the crime of aggression, complementing the existing International Criminal Court investigation in Ukraine.
Beyond Ukraine
Russia's military footprint was also in the news elsewhere. On 1 May, the jihadist group Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin took over a base outside Tessalit, in Mali's Kidal Region, after Malian troops and Russia's Africa Corps abandoned it.
What the date marked
By 4 May, then, the picture was of a declared two-day pause, due to begin on 8 May, set against continuing drone strikes on energy infrastructure, a European call for sanctions to stay in place and for a tribunal to be created. The announcement itself covered only the 8–9 May window.
