"Ukraine used US-made HIMARS systems to violate Easter truce" —Zakharova

The Ukrainian side violated the Easter truce using US-made HIMARS MLRS systems to deliver strikes, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, commenting on the US Department of States’ statement where it expressed the hope for the extension of the Easter truce between Russia and Ukraine.

"It (the ceasefire - TASS) was not observed by the Kiev regime during Easter. Notably, the used American weapons, HIMARS systems, to violate it," she wrote on her Telegram channel.

According to Zakharova, this was quite expected from the Ukrainian side. "Thus, during the moratorium on strikes on energy facilities, [Vladimir] Zelensky, who had agreed on it, targeted civilian energy infrastructure," she emphasized.

At a meeting with Valery Gerasimov, the Chief of the General Staff, on April 19, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced an Easter truce until 12:00 a.m. Moscow time (9:00 p.m. GMT) on April 21. He also urged Kiev to follow suit.