The Kremlin said on Wednesday it would review details from Washington about a proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine before responding, while U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed hope a deal would be struck within days.
As Moscow considered the plan, President Vladimir Putin, dressed in military fatigues, made a surprise visit to Russia¡¯s Kursk region for the first time since Ukrainian troops captured part of it last year.
With Putin¡¯s presence highlighting recent Russian advances in Kursk, Valery Gerasimov, head of Russia¡¯s General Staff, told the Kremlin leader his troops had repelled Ukrainian forces from 86% of the ground they once held in Kursk. Ukraine had hoped to use that territory as a bargaining chip in any peace talks with Moscow.
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