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| # Temporary Agreement to Stop a War
"Truce" redirects here. For other uses, see [Truce (disambiguation)](/Truce_(disambiguation)).
For other uses, see [Ceasefire (disambiguation)](/Ceasefire_(disambiguation)).
A ceasefire, also known as a truce, is a temporary halt to hostilities in a conflict, where opposing parties agree to suspend aggressive actions. This agreement can be formal or informal and may involve state actors, non-state actors, or a combination of both. Ceasefires are often mediated by third parties and can be part of a broader peace process or imposed by international bodies such as the [United Nations Security Council](/United_Nations_Security_Council) through resolutions under Chapter VII of the [United Nations Charter](/Charter_of_the_United_Nations). Unlike an [armistice](/Armistice), which formally ends a war, a ceasefire is typically a temporary measure, though it can be intended to last indefinitely.
The primary objective of a ceasefire is to halt violence, but the underlying purposes can vary widely. Ceasefires may be implemented to meet short-term humanitarian needs, manage the conflict to reduce its devastating effects, or advance efforts toward a peaceful resolution. However, not all ceasefires are intended to foster peace; some may be strategically used by one party to gain an advantage, such as rearming or repositioning forces, which can create bargaining problems and reduce the likelihood of a durable ceasefire.
The durability of ceasefire agreements is influenced by several factors, including the establishment of demilitarized zones, the withdrawal of troops, and third-party guarantees such as monitoring or peacekeeping. Ceasefires are more likely to be durable when they reduce incentives to attack, decrease uncertainty about the adversary's intentions, and include mechanisms to prevent accidents from escalating into conflict.
## Overview
Ceasefire agreements are more likely to be reached when the costs of conflict are high and when the actors involved have lower audience costs. Scholars emphasize that war termination is more likely to occur when actors have more information about each other, can make credible commitments, and when the domestic political situation allows leaders to make war termination agreements without facing domestic punishment.
By one estimate, there were at least 2,202 ceasefires across 66 countries in 109 civil conflicts over the period 1989ā2020.
## Ceasefire Types
Researchers Govinda Clayton and Valerie Sticher classified civil-war ceasefire agreements into three types, with successively broader peace agreements and higher trust levels:
- A "cessation of hostilities" agreement that can be implemented quickly, while detailed peace negotiations are still unrealistic and trust levels are low.
- A "preliminary ceasefire" agreement, in which the motivations for the parties to stop the conflict are stronger and negotiations are ongoing, but trust remains low.
- A "definitive ceasefire" agreement, in which the ceasefire is part of a broad peace agreement, typically including disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration procedures.
Clayton and Sticher found, based on ceasefire data for civil wars from 1990 to 2019, that the periods without violence following a ceasefire were successively longer for cessations of hostilities, preliminary ceasefires, and definitive ceasefires. Within three months of the ceasefire initiation, 30 percent of cessations of hostility, 50 percent of preliminary ceasefires, and 70 percent of definitive ceasefires still had no conflict-related deaths.
## Historical Examples
Historically, the concept of a ceasefire existed at least by the time of the Middle Ages, when it was known as a ['truce of God'](/Peace_and_Truce_of_God).
### World War I
During [World War I](/World_War_I), on December 24, 1914, there was an [unofficial ceasefire](/Christmas_truce) on the [Western Front](/Western_Front_(World_War_I)) as [France](/French_Third_Republic), the [United Kingdom](/United_Kingdom_of_Great_Britain_and_Ireland), and [Germany](/German_Empire) observed [Christmas](/Christmas). There are accounts that claimed the unofficial ceasefire took place throughout the week leading to Christmas, and that British and German troops exchanged seasonal greetings and songs between their trenches. The ceasefire was brief but spontaneous. Beginning when German soldiers lit [Christmas trees](/Christmas_tree), it quickly spread up and down the Western Front. One account described the development in the following words:
> It was good to see the human spirit prevailed amongst all sides at the front, the sharing and fraternity. All was well until the higher echelons of command got to hear about the effect of the ceasefire, whereby their wrath ensured a return to hostilities.
There was no peace treaty signed during the [Christmas truce](/Christmas_truce), and the war resumed after a few days.
### Karachi Agreement
The [Karachi Agreement](/Karachi_Agreement) of 1949 was signed by the military representatives of India and Pakistan, supervised by the [United Nations Commission for India and Pakistan](/United_Nations_Commission_for_India_and_Pakistan), establishing a cease-fire line in [Kashmir](/Kashmir) following the [Indo-Pakistani War of 1947](/Indo-Pakistani_War_of_1947).
### Korean War
On November 29, 1952, the US [president-elect](/President-elect_of_the_United_States), [Dwight D. Eisenhower](/Dwight_D._Eisenhower), went to Korea to see how to end the [Korean War](/Korean_War). With the [UN](/UN)'s acceptance of [India](/India)'s proposed armistice, the ceasefire between the [UN Command](/UN_Command) on the one side and the [Korean People's Army](/Korean_People%27s_Army) (KPA) and the [People's Volunteer Army](/People%27s_Volunteer_Army) (PVA) on the other took hold at approximately the [38th parallel north](/38th_parallel_north). These parties signed the [Korean Armistice Agreement](/Korean_Armistice_Agreement) on July 27, 1953, but South Korean President [Syngman Rhee](/Syngman_Rhee), who attacked the ceasefire proceedings, did not. Upon agreeing to the ceasefire which called upon the governments of South Korea, the [United States](/United_States), North Korea and [China](/China) to participate in continued peace talks, the principal [belligerents](/Belligerents) of the war established the [Korean Demilitarized Zone](/Korean_Demilitarized_Zone) (DMZ) and it has since been patrolled by the joint [Republic of Korea Army](/Republic_of_Korea_Army), US, and UN Command on the one side and the KPA on the other. The war is considered to have ended at that point even though there still is no peace treaty.
### Vietnam War
On New Years Day, 1968, [Pope Paul VI](/Pope_Paul_VI) convinced [South Vietnam](/South_Vietnam) and the United States to declare a 24-hour-truce. However, the [Viet Cong](/Viet_Cong) and [North Vietnam](/North_Vietnam) did not adhere to the truce, and ambushed the 2nd Battalion, [Republic of Vietnam Marine Division](/Republic_of_Vietnam_Marine_Division), 10 minutes after midnight in [Mį»¹ Tho](/M%E1%BB%B9_Tho). The Viet Cong would also attack a [U.S. Army](/United_States_Army) fire support base near [Saigon](/Ho_Chi_Minh_City), causing more casualties.
On January 15, 1973, US President [Richard Nixon](/Richard_Nixon) ordered a ceasefire of the aerial bombings in [North Vietnam](/North_Vietnam). The decision came after [Henry Kissinger](/Henry_Kissinger), the [National Security Advisor](/National_Security_Advisor_(United_States)) to the President, returned to [Washington, D.C.](/Washington,_D.C.), from [Paris, France](/Paris,_France), with a draft peace proposal. Combat missions continued in [South Vietnam](/South_Vietnam). By January 27, 1973, all parties of the [Vietnam War](/Vietnam_War) signed a ceasefire as a prelude to the [Paris Peace Accord](/Paris_Peace_Accord).
### Persian Gulf War
After [Iraq](/Iraq) was driven out of [Kuwait](/Kuwait) by US-led coalition forces during [Operation Desert Storm](/Operation_Desert_Storm), Iraq and the [UN Security Council](/UN_Security_Council) signed a ceasefire agreement on March 3, 1991. Subsequently, throughout the 1990s, the [U.N. Security Council](/United_Nations_Security_Council) passed numerous resolutions calling for Iraq to disarm its [weapons of mass destruction](/Weapons_of_mass_destruction) unconditionally and immediately. Because no peace treaty was signed after the [Gulf War](/Gulf_War), the war still remained in effect, including an alleged assassination attempt of former US President [George H. W. Bush](/George_H._W._Bush) by Iraqi agents while on a visit to Kuwait; [Iraq being bombed in June 1993](/Cruise_missile_strikes_on_Iraq_(June_1993)) as a response, Iraqi forces firing on coalition aircraft patrolling the [Iraqi no-fly zones](/Iraqi_no-fly_zones), US President [Bill Clinton](/Bill_Clinton)'s bombing of Baghdad in 1998 during [Operation Desert Fox](/Operation_Desert_Fox), and an earlier 1996 bombing of Iraq by the US during [Operation Desert Strike](/Cruise_missile_strikes_on_Iraq_(1996)). The war remained in effect until 2003, when US and UK forces [invaded Iraq](/2003_invasion_of_Iraq) and toppled [Saddam Hussein](/Saddam_Hussein)'s regime from power.
### Kashmir Conflict
A UN-mediated ceasefire was agreed between [India](/India) and [Pakistan](/Pakistan), on 1 January 1949, ending the [Indo-Pakistani War of 1947](/Indo-Pakistani_War_of_1947) (also called the 1947 Kashmir War). Fighting broke out between the two newly independent countries in [Kashmir](/Jammu_and_Kashmir_(princely_state)) in October 1947, with India intervening on behalf of the princely ruler of Kashmir, who had joined India, and Pakistan supporting the rebels. The fighting was limited to Kashmir, but, apprehensive that it might develop into a full-scale international war, India referred the matter to the UN Security Council under Article 35 of the UN Charter, which addresses situations "likely to endanger the maintenance of international peace". The Security Council set up the dedicated [United Nations Commission for India and Pakistan](/United_Nations_Commission_for_India_and_Pakistan), which mediated for an entire year as the fighting continued. After several UN resolutions outlining a procedure for resolving the dispute via a [plebiscite](/Plebiscite), a ceasefire agreement was reached between the countries towards the end of December 1948, which came into effect in the New Year. The Security Council set up the [United Nations Military Observer Group for India and Pakistan](/United_Nations_Military_Observer_Group_for_India_and_Pakistan) (UNMOGIP) to monitor the ceasefire line. India declared a ceasefire in Kashmir Valley during Ramadan in 2018.
### Northern Ireland
The [Irish Republican Army](/Provisional_Irish_Republican_Army) held several Christmas ceasefires (usually referred to as truces) during the Northern Ireland conflict.
### IsraeliāPalestinian Conflict
An example of a ceasefire in the [IsraeliāPalestinian conflict](/Israeli%E2%80%93Palestinian_conflict) was announced between [Israel](/Israel) and the [Palestinian National Authority](/Palestinian_National_Authority) on February 8, 2005. When announced, chief [Palestinian](/Palestinian_people) [negotiator](/Negotiation) [Saeb Erekat](/Saeb_Erekat) publicly defined the ceasefire as follows: "We have agreed that today President [Mahmoud Abbas](/Mahmoud_Abbas) will declare a full cessation of violence against Israelis anywhere and Prime Minister [Ariel Sharon](/Ariel_Sharon) will declare a full cessation of violence and military activities against Palestinians anywhere." On November 21, 2023, Qatar announced that they had negotiated a truce between Israel and Hamas would pause [Gaza war](/Gaza_war), allow for the release of some hostages and bring more aid to Palestinian civilians. As part of the deal, 50 hostages held by Hamas were released while Israel released 150 Palestinian prisoners.
### Syrian Civil War
Several attempts have been made to broker ceasefires in the [Syrian Civil War](/Syrian_Civil_War).
### Russo-Ukrainian War
Several attempts have been made to broker ceasefires during the [Russian invasion of Ukraine](/Russian_invasion_of_Ukraine).
In May 2023, [Donald Trump](/Donald_Trump) told the UK's GB news that as US president he would end the war within 24 hours, given that he had good relationships with the leaders of Ukraine and Russia. He added that it would be easy to conclude a ceasefire agreement to end the war.
### 2020 Global Ceasefire
The 2020 global ceasefire was a response to a formal appeal by United Nations Secretary-General [AntĆ³nio Manuel de Oliveira Guterres](/Ant%C3%B3nio_Guterres) on March 23 for a global ceasefire as part of the United Nations' response to the COVID-19 [coronavirus pandemic](/COVID-19_pandemic). On 24 June 2020, 170 UN Member States and Observers signed a non-binding statement in support of the appeal, rising to 172 on 25 June 2020, and on 1 July 2020, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding a general and immediate global cessation of hostilities for at least 90 days.
### 2024 IsraelāHezbollah Ceasefire
The 2024 IsraelāHezbollah ceasefire was announced by United States President [Joe Biden](/Joe_Biden) on November 26, 2024.
### 2025 IsraelāHamas Ceasefire
The adoption of an IsraelāHamas ceasefire was announced by United States President [Donald Trump](/Donald_Trump) on October 9, 2025 and went into effect on October 10.
## See Also
- [2020 Nagorno-Karabakh ceasefire agreement](/2020_Nagorno-Karabakh_ceasefire_agreement)
- [Armistice](/Armistice)
- [De-escalation](/De-escalation)
- [Demilitarized zone](/Demilitarized_zone)
- [Olympic Truce](/Olympic_Truce)
- [Korean Armistice Agreement](/Korean_War)
- [Peacebuilding](/Peacebuilding)
- [Peacemaking](/Peacemaking)
- [Peace process](/Peace_process)
- [Peace treaty](/Peace_treaty)
- [Surrender (military)](/Surrender_(military))
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