Putin aide rejects ceasefire proposal, saying it would give 'breather' to Ukraine army

LAST UPDATE | 2 hrs ago

RUSSIA PRESIDENT VLADIMIR Putin has shot down proposals for a ceasefire, with his aide saying it would only be a “breather” for Ukraine’s army.

The remarks came after Putin made a surprise visit to the frontline in his country’s Kursk region to encourage his soldiers on in the war against Ukraine.

The United States had said it wanted Russia to agree “unconditionally” to a complete 30-day ceasefire – a plan Kyiv endorsed.

Yuri Ushakov, a top Kremlin aide, has today criticised the US-Ukrainian proposal, saying it would just be a “nothing more than a temporary breather for the Ukrainian military”. 

He was speaking to state media after a phone call to US national security advisor Mike Waltz.

In Putin’s first visit to Kursk since Ukraine launched its shock counter-offensive in August, he hailed recent gains and urged his troops on.

Putin expressed hope his army was on the brink of “fully liberating” Russia’s Kursk region, as Ukraine hinted it was pulling troops back in the face of rapid Russian advances.

“I am counting on the fact that all the combat tasks facing our units will be fulfilled, and the territory of the Kursk region will soon be completely liberated from the enemy,” he said in televised remarks.

In a video released by the Russian Presidential Press Service yesterday, Putin is accompanied by chief of general staff Valery Gerasimov as they visit military headquarters in the Kursk region.

Russia’s forces have retaken 24 settlements in the border region over the last five days, chief of the general staff Valery Gerasimov told Putin.

Shortly after footage of Putin’s remarks aired on Russian state TV, Ukraine’s army commander suggested his troops were pulling back to minimise losses to their forces.

Ukraine had hoped to use its hold on the Kursk region as a bargaining chip in peace talks with Moscow.

“In the most difficult situation, my priority has been and remains saving the lives of Ukrainian soldiers. To this end, the units of the defence forces, if necessary, manoeuvre to more favourable positions,” commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky said in a Facebook post, in language typically used to describe a withdrawal.

He added however: “Despite the increased pressure from the Russian/North Korean army, we will hold the defence in the Kursk region as long as it is appropriate and necessary.”

American officials were expected to put the ceasefire proposals directly to Putin overnight, with G7 leaders meeting today in Canada to discuss the war.

Ukraine and its allies say more than 10,000 North Korean troops are fighting for Russia in Kursk.

Gerasimov said Russia had captured 430 Ukrainian soldiers in the region, while Syrsky said 942 Russians had been taken as prisoners of war.

Putin said the captured Ukrainian fighters should be “treated as terrorists, in accordance with the laws of the Russian Federation,” suggesting they could face trials in Russian courts and be jailed for decades.

Russia has already put several captured Ukrainian fighters on trial for “terrorism”.

The Geneva Convention prohibits putting captured fighters on trial for their involvement in armed hostilities.

Gerasimov said Russia had retaken around 1,100 square kilometres (425 square miles) of territory in the Kursk region — the vast majority of what Ukraine initially seized in its shock August 2024 incursion.

With reporting by – © AFP 2025