President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Friday insisted that Ukraine order a few of its forces to give up to Russia, a placing demand made hours after President Trump mentioned the USA had “excellent and productive” discussions with Mr. Putin a couple of potential cease-fire.
Mr. Putin’s televised feedback got here shortly after Mr. Trump, on social media, mentioned he had urged the Russian chief to spare the lives of Ukrainian troopers struggling to carry on to a patch of land within the Kursk area of Russia.
“I’ve strongly requested to President Putin that their lives be spared,” Mr. Trump wrote.
Each presidents claimed on Friday that Ukrainian forces have been surrounded in Kursk, the world the place Kyiv’s troops surprised Russia with a cross-border incursion final summer time. Impartial analysts have challenged these claims, and Ukraine’s navy on Friday once more rejected them.
Nonetheless, Russian forces have of late had the higher hand within the combating in Kursk. And Mr. Putin mentioned that for Mr. Trump’s name “to be successfully carried out,” the leaders of Ukraine wanted to order their “navy items to put down their arms and give up.” Neither man has raised the concept of Russian troops on Ukrainian land surrendering.
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine gave no indication on Friday that his nation’s troopers would withdraw from Kursk, not to mention give up, however acknowledged that the scenario within the area was “very troublesome.”
He additionally questioned whether or not Russia was performing in good religion, accusing Mr. Putin of “doing every part doable to make sure that diplomacy fails.” Ukraine, Mr. Zelensky reiterated, has already agreed to a 30-day, unconditional cease-fire to cease the conflict that Russia’s chief started by ordering the full-scale invasion three years in the past.
“Putin can’t get out of this conflict, as a result of then he will likely be left with nothing,” Mr. Zelensky wrote on social media. “That’s the reason he’s now doing every part doable to sabotage diplomacy, setting extraordinarily troublesome and unacceptable situations from the very starting, even earlier than the cease-fire.”
Battles have been raging in Kursk as Moscow’s forces push to drive Ukrainian troops from the land they seized over the summer time. Russian troops have superior in latest days, with Mr. Putin urging them to complete the job “within the shortest doable time.”
What occurs subsequent in Kursk has change into a key level of competition forward of a possible cease-fire. Mr. Putin had on Thursday recommended much less explicitly that he needed Ukraine to order its troopers there to give up as a part of any deal to finish the conflict, which has killed and wounded greater than 1,000,000 troopers and numerous civilians.
However his feedback on Friday have been way more direct, and got here as each the Kremlin and White Home signaled negotiations have been transferring ahead regardless of the raft of concessions Moscow seems to be looking for.
After the Russian chief met with Steve Witkoff, the U.S. particular envoy, in Moscow, late Thursday, high officers at each the White Home and the Kremlin expressed “cautious optimism.”
“We had excellent and productive discussions with President Vladimir Putin of Russia yesterday,” Mr. Trump wrote Friday morning on his Fact Social platform, in an obvious reference to the assembly with Mr. Witkoff. “There’s a excellent likelihood that this horrible, bloody conflict can lastly come to an finish.”
It wasn’t instantly clear whether or not Mr. Putin and Mr. Trump had spoken immediately. The Kremlin had mentioned that Mr. Putin, in his assembly with Mr. Witkoff, “handed alongside info and extra indicators for President Trump.” It additionally mentioned that Mr. Putin anticipated to speak to Mr. Trump however that the decision had but to be scheduled.
In that Fact Social put up, Mr. Trump additionally mentioned hundreds of Ukrainian troops have been “utterly surrounded by the Russian navy” — an obvious reference to Russian claims that Ukrainian troopers have been surrounded in Kursk.
“There isn’t any menace of encirclement of our items,” the Ukrainian navy’s normal workers mentioned in an announcement quickly after, calling such studies “false and fabricated by the Russians.”
A Ukrainian soldier combating in Kursk who was reached by telephone on Friday, talking on situation of anonymity to debate the present scenario on the battlefield, mentioned “the scenario is unhealthy, virtually essential.” Nevertheless it was not as unhealthy as Mr. Trump described in his put up, the soldier added.
The Ukrainian authorities on Friday ordered a number of villages within the Sumy area, throughout the border from Kursk, to evacuate amid fears that the combating might spill over.
“Aerial assaults — akin to glide bombs and drones — have intensified within the border areas,” Volodymyr Artiukhin, the Ukrainian head of the Sumy Regional Navy Administration, mentioned on Fb, saying the necessary evacuation of eight villages.
If Russian forces drive Ukrainian troops out of Kursk, that might deny Mr. Zelensky a major bargaining chip in any negotiations.
And Mr. Putin confirmed on Thursday that he was in no hurry to simply accept the supply of a 30-day truce made by Ukraine and the USA this week — telling a information convention that he was open to the proposal, however including that he would search to barter over a slew of points, akin to Western weapons deliveries to Ukraine, that might delay or derail any deal.
Dmitri S. Peskov, Mr. Putin’s spokesman, recommended on Friday that the end result of the diplomatic back-and-forth would solely change into clear after Mr. Witkoff had briefed Mr. Trump and after the Russian and American leaders had spoken by telephone. The 2 leaders are final recognized to have spoken on Feb. 12.
Mr. Witkoff, who’s formally the president’s Center East envoy, has additionally taken on a key position as an interlocutor with Russia — spending three hours assembly with Mr. Putin final month as he finalized a prisoner change.
“After Mr. Witkoff passes alongside the entire info he obtained in Moscow to his head of state — we’ll decide the timing of the dialog after that,” Mr. Peskov mentioned. “There’s an understanding on each side that such a dialog is critical.”
The feedback have been the most recent indication that Mr. Putin is probably going making an attempt to stability a need to keep away from upsetting Mr. Trump along with his effort to pressure wide-ranging concessions from the West and from Ukraine. Whereas Mr. Trump says he desires to finish the conflict as rapidly as doable, Mr. Putin seems assured that he has time on his aspect and that an unconditional cease-fire would profit Ukraine.
Officers in Kyiv have argued that Mr. Putin is now merely making an attempt to tug out negotiations whereas he continues combating and has no plans to make concessions that might deliver a couple of sturdy peace.
Michael Waltz, the U.S. nationwide safety adviser, instructed Fox Information that the White Home had “cautious optimism” in regards to the prospects for a cease-fire.
“In fact, each side are going to have their calls for,” he mentioned, “and after all each side are going to need to make some compromises.”
Marc Santora contributed reporting from Dnipro, Ukraine.
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