Ceasefire
Temporary halt to armed hostilities agreed between belligerent parties, often as a precursor to a broader peace agreement or to allow humanitarian access.
Last refreshed: 17 March 2026
If both sides demand the other's surrender, what does a ceasefire mean?
Latest on Ceasefire
- What is a ceasefire?
- A ceasefire is an agreed halt to active hostilities between warring parties, usually a precondition for peace negotiations. It differs from an armistice, which is a formal agreement to end a war.
- Is there a ceasefire in the Iran conflict?
- No. Iran resumed hourly attacks after a brief pause in late March 2026. The US, Israel, and Iran all have stated war aims incompatible with a mutual ceasefire.
- Why did the Abu Dhabi Ukraine talks fail?
- The second Abu Dhabi round of Russia-Ukraine peace talks broke on the same territorial question as previous attempts: Russia's demand for recognition of occupied territory, which Ukraine refuses to concede.
- Did Russia call for a ceasefire in Iran?
- Russia sponsored a mutual ceasefire resolution at the UN Security Council that failed 4-2-9, with the US and Latvia voting against. Russia simultaneously shared satellite targeting data with Iran.
- What are Israel's conditions for a ceasefire in Lebanon?
- Defence Minister Israel Katz declared all territory south of the Litani River a war aim, a claim incompatible with any Lebanese ceasefire that leaves the border status undefined.
Background
In Ukraine, the Abu Dhabi round broke on the same territorial question that has stalled every previous attempt. The structural problem is identical across both conflicts: one side's minimum acceptable outcome exceeds the other's maximum concession. Israel declared all territory south of the Litani a war aim, incompatible with any Lebanese ceasefire that leaves the border undefined.
A ceasefire is an agreed halt to active hostilities, typically the first step toward a peace process. In both the 2026 Iran conflict and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, the gap between warring parties' stated positions has made even a temporary halt structurally difficult. Iran resumed hourly attacks after a brief unilateral pause; Donald Trump claimed a Hormuz prize on the same day, signalling Washington viewed pauses as tactical rather than diplomatic. Trump then told reporters he believed the US had won.
Russia sponsored a mutual ceasefire resolution at the Security Council that failed 4-2-9, while sharing satellite targeting data with Iran, destroying its credibility as a neutral broker in both conflicts. Every channel opened since February 2026 collapsed without producing a formal process or a named counterpart capable of delivering compliance.
