Ukrainians prepare for war-ravaged Easter

By Stefan J. Bos

People living in Ukraine's southeastern region of Zaporizhzhia have been asked to avoid mass gatherings on Easter Sunday.

Zaporizhzhia  regional head, Yuriy Malashko, said in published remarks: "We should not hope for a lull [in fighting] during the holidays because the possibility of enemy attacks is not out of the question."

He urged residents in the area, home to Europe's largest nuclear power plant occupied by Russian forces, to brace themselves for more violence.

The regional leader asked them to pay attention to air raid sirens and to remain cautious during the Easter holidays.

Among others facing a difficult Easter is Ukrainian soldier Roman Trokhymets, surrounded by Russian forces in one of the trenches around the devastated eastern city of Bakhmut. "I am again here to fight in Bakhmut. But this time from another side," he said in a video message as shots were fired nearby.

French appeal

With ongoing suffering in and around the battlefields, French president Emmanuel Macron has urged China's leader Xi Jinping to bring Russia "back to reason" over the war in Ukraine.

He spoke as the two held the first of a series of high-level meetings in Beijing. "The Russian aggression in Ukraine has dealt a blow to this stability," he told Xi sitting opposite the table.

"It [the war] ended decades of peace in Europe. I know I can count on you. But, moreover, under the two principles I have just mentioned, to bring Russia back to reason and everyone to the negotiating table," Marcon stressed.  

China has presented a 12-point peace plan to end the Ukraine-Russia war, which began after Moscow invaded Ukraine last year.

But there were no indications that both sides would agree on a peaceful end to the armed conflict this Easter.