President Vladimir Putin called on Friday for beleaguered Ukrainian troops in the Russian region of Kursk to "surrender" as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the Russian leader of seeking to sabotage a ceasefire initiative.
U.S. President Donald Trump urged Putin to spare the lives of the Ukrainian troops as he said his envoy had held "productive" talks with Russia's leader on a proposed 30-day ceasefire.
Russia has mounted a rapid counteroffensive in the western border region of Kursk over the past week, recapturing much of the territory Ukraine seized in a shock incursion last August.
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