From: Transform Ukraine By Douglas Landro / March 20, 2025
As Putin and Trump Negotiate a Partial Ceasefire, Russian Missiles Continue to Fall While Ukraine Returns 175 POWs in Major Exchange
Summary of the Day – March 19, 2025
The third day of intensifying diplomatic activity between the White House and Kremlin produced a tantalizing glimpse of what peace might look like, even as the battlefield reality told a drastically different story. President Volodymyr Zelensky agreed to halt strikes on Russian energy infrastructure during a call with U.S. President Donald Trump—mirroring Putin’s similar pledge a day prior—but overnight strikes across Ukraine betrayed Moscow’s true intentions. Meanwhile, Germany’s outgoing government unlocked an additional $3.3 billion in military aid, and Ukraine brought home 175 prisoners of war in one of the largest exchanges of the conflict.
A Ceasefire in Name Only: Russian Strikes Continue Despite Putin’s Pledge
Hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin promised U.S. President Donald Trump a 30-day pause in attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, air raid sirens blared across Ukraine. The overnight barrage on March 19 included 145 drones and six missiles targeting energy facilities in multiple regions. Russian drones struck a hospital in Sumy Oblast and a railway power system in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, causing a fire that prompted Ukrzaliznytsia to dispatch emergency crews. When those crews arrived, Russian forces launched a second strike on the same location.
“This is what ‘immediate ceasefire on all energy and infrastructure’ looks like,” wrote Oleksandr Shevchenko, Deputy Director at Ukrzaliznytsia, sharing video of the attack.
Voice of Ukraine 