Russia on Saturday proposed Kyiv to temporarily halt shelling in the front line industrial city of Kostiantynivka in the eastern Donetsk region in order to handover the bodies of Ukrainian servicemen.
A statement by the Defense Ministry said the Russian side is ready to conduct what it described as a “humanitarian operation” to transfer the bodies of fallen Ukrainian servicemen in the city, which Russia claimed it captured a day prior.
“For this purpose, it is proposed that the Ukrainian side cease shelling the city of Kostiantynivka from 12 pm to 6 pm Moscow time (0900GMT to 1500GMT) on July 6, 2026,” the statement said.
It added that the Ukrainian side should inform Russia of its decision through existing intelligence channels by 12 pm Moscow time on Sunday.
Ukrainian authorities did not immediately comment on the statement.
The proposal comes as the Kremlin claimed taking control of Kostiantynivka late Friday, a development which President Vladimir Putin described as the "first, but very important, stage in the capture of the already important Sloviansk-Kramatorsk defensive hub of the Ukrainian Armed Forces."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denied Russia's claims on capturing Kostiantynivka, which is about 24 kilometers (15 miles) southeast of the city of Kramatorsk, the administrative center of the eastern region since Russia seized Donetsk city in 2014. He accused Putin of choosing “to lie to the world” about the situation on the front line.
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