Are Russians “encircling” Ukrainian soldiers in Kursk? In response to Donald Trump’s assertion, Kyiv
Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, stated earlier today that if Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region gave up their weapons, he would spare their lives.
The army said that such reports by the Russians are for “political manipulation” and to exert pressure on Ukraine and its partners.
For the most part, nothing has changed in the last day. The Ukrainian Army stated that combat operations are still taking place within the ‘Kursk’ group of forces’ operational zone.
“Our soldiers are using every weapon system at their disposal to effectively repel enemy offensive actions and inflict significant fire damage,” the statement continued.
The clarification by Ukraine comes after US President Donald Trump appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin to spare the lives of thousands of Ukrainian troops that he said were in a “very bad and vulnerable position”, without elaborating what he was referring to.
“I have strongly requested to President Putin that their lives be spared,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.
Putin responded to Trump’s plea by saying that if Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region gave up their weapons, he would spare their lives.
In comments aired on Russian television, Putin stated, “We are sympathetic to President Trump’s call,” according to AFP. “If they lay down their arms and surrender, they will be guaranteed life and dignified treatment,” Putin said.
While Ukraine’s military leadership denied the claims, its president, Volodymyr Zelensky, accepted that Ukrainian troops were under “mounting pressure” in the western Russian region of Kursk but that the operation had eased pressure on Ukrainian troops elsewhere.
“The situation in the Kursk region is obviously very difficult,” news agency AFP quoted Zelensky as saying at a briefing in Kyiv, adding that fighting in the eastern Donetsk region had stabilised.
The offensive in Kursk by Ukraine
Ukraine made a bold cross-border invasion of Kursk in August of last year. Since World War II, it was the biggest assault on Russian territory.
In a matter of days, Ukrainian forces had taken hundreds of Russian POWs and seized 1,000 square kilometres (386 square miles) of territory, including the vital border town of Sudzha.
The “request” that Donald Trump made to Putin
In an effort to bring the war to a close, US President Donald Trump asked Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday to “spare” Ukrainian troops being driven out of Russia’s Kursk region.
Trump’s remarks came after what he called a “very good and productive” meeting between Putin and his envoy, Steve Witkoff, in Moscow on Thursday night. “There is a very good chance that this horrible, bloody war can finally come to an end,” Trump said with optimism.