Yanukovych sentenced in absentia as Putin announces Victory Day truce
A look back at two developments reported on 28 April 2025, a Ukrainian court verdict and a Kremlin ceasefire declaration.
What did the news cycle around 29 April 2025 carry from the previous day? Two items stood out: a Ukrainian court verdict against a former president, and a ceasefire declaration from Moscow.
On 28 April 2025, a Ukrainian court sentenced former president Viktor Yanukovych in absentia to 15 years in prison. He was convicted of inciting Ukrainian officials to desert and of organising an illegal crossing of the border with Russia during his flight in 2014.
The same day, as reported at the time, Russian president Vladimir Putin declared a three-day ceasefire in Ukraine for 8–10 May, to mark Victory Day, the anniversary of the end of the Second World War.
The two reports concerned different matters: one a judicial ruling in Kyiv's courts on events from 2014, the other a announcement tied to the war that began with Russia's full-scale invasion.
