Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said yesterday that a fragile truce between government troops and separatist fighters had led to the first day free of deaths or injuries for months.

Mr Poroshenko said the lull in fighting in east Ukraine — which began on Tuesday after he proposed a “day of silence” — appeared to be holding.

“Today is the first 24 hours for seven months when we have a real ceasefire in Ukraine,” he said during a visit to Australia. “You simply can’t imagine how important it is.”

Mr Poroshenko acknowledged it was too early to declare the latest deal a success.

The war has left more than 4,300 people dead and displaced hundreds of thousands.