LAST UPDATE | 13 Mar

RUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR Putin has backed the US proposal for a ceasefire in the war with Ukraine, but said there remain “serious questions” he needs to discuss with the United States, possibly directly with President Donald Trump.

Putin said he was “for” the proposal of a 30-day ceasefire “but that there are nuances” and that he had “serious questions” about how it would work.

“I think we need to talk to our American colleagues… Maybe have a phone call with President Trump and discuss this with him,” he told reporters.

Trump has said he would be happy to meet with Putin to discuss the details, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rebuked the Russian president’s response as “very manipulative”. 

“We now have all heard from Russia Putin’s very predictable, very manipulative words in response to the idea of a ceasefire,” Zelenskyy said in his nightly address.

A Kremlin aide had dismissed the proposal earlier this morning, saying that the truce would only be a “breather” for Ukraine’s army. 

That was before US envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow this afternoon to deliver the ceasefire plan to the Russian government.   

“He (Witkoff) will be meeting with Russian representatives of a very high rank,” said aide Yuri Ushakov, adding that a meeting with the Russian president could not be “ruled out”.

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

President Trump has said it would be “very disappointing” if Russia rejected the proposal.

“He put out a very promising statement but it wasn’t complete,” Trump, who was meeting NATO chief Mark Rutte at the White House, told reporters when asked about Putin’s remarks.

“I’d love to meet with him or talk to him. But we have to get it over with fast.”

Trump added that it would be “a very disappointing moment for the world” if Russia rejects the plan.

“A lot of the details of a final agreement have actually been discussed. Now we’re going to see if Russia is there and, if not, it will be a very disappointing moment for the world,” Trump said.

Trump also gave a glimpse of the negotiations for a longer-term peace after any ceasefire, including what territory Ukraine would have to give up to Russia.

“We have not been working in the dark. We’ve been discussing with Ukraine land and pieces of land that would be kept and lost,” he said.

He added that there was also “a very big power plant involved — who’s going to get the power plant?”

Trump did not name give any specifics, but the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, currently held by Russia, is on the front lines of the fighting. It is Europe’s largest nuclear power station.

Negotiations were complex because they were effectively “creating the edge of a country,” Trump added.

Earlier today, Putin made a surprise visit to the frontline in his country’s Kursk region to encourage his soldiers on in the war against Ukraine.

Putin in Kursk 

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.”

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 David Mac Redmond and AFP

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