Bangladesh, April 20 -- As Christians in Eastern Europe prepared to mark Orthodox Easter, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a temporary ceasefire-an overture ostensibly meant to allow for a solemn religious observance. The truce, spanning 30 hours from 6:00 pm on April 19 to midnight on April 21, was meant to pause hostilities during one of the holiest periods in the Orthodox calendar. However, the brief respite immediately became the latest flashpoint in a war defined by mutual distrust and broken promises.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded to the ceasefire declaration with a mixture of skepticism and a conditional counterproposal. While not outright rejecting the idea of a ceasefire, Zelensky called for a more m...