Trump Mentions Economic Sanctions, Pressures Russia Again
On the 12th (local time), Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Russia’s southwestern Kursk region, which Ukraine had occupied last August, and expressed hopes that “this area will be liberated.” He praised the Russian military for repelling the Ukrainian forces, interpreted as an effort to secure a more advantageous position in ceasefire negotiations by reclaiming Kursk. On the 11th, U.S. President Donald Trump, who had reached an agreement with Ukraine on a ’30-day temporary ceasefire plan’, urged Russia again to accept the ceasefire proposal.
According to TASS and other sources, President Putin, dressed in a green military uniform, visited Kursk directly and stated, “In the near future, our task is to decisively drive out the entrenched enemy in Kursk and fully liberate the Kursk region.” This intention to continue fighting suggests that the 30-day temporary ceasefire plan proposed by the U.S. and Ukraine might not be accepted immediately.
On this day, Valery Gerasimov, Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, reported to President Putin that the Russian military had recaptured 1,100 km² out of the 1,300 km² taken by Ukraine, emphasizing “this is over 86% of the territory occupied by the enemy.” He also declared that 430 Ukrainian soldiers were captured and that Ukraine’s plan regarding Kursk had failed.
President Putin stated that the captured Ukrainian soldiers should be treated as terrorists under Russian law. He claimed that foreign mercenaries fighting for the Ukrainian military would not be covered by the Geneva Conventions, which prohibit putting captured soldiers on trial. This comment is presumed to be directed at the mercenaries from Europe and other regions supporting Ukraine.
The Ukrainian side refuted Russia’s major offensive on Kursk. Oleksandr Syrsky, Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, issued a statement saying, “Our military repelled the enemy’s attacks eight times in Kursk,” and “despite strengthened pressures from the Russian and North Korean allied forces, we will continue to defend Kursk and hold it until the end.” Syrsky also claimed that since last August, Russia has suffered approximately 55,000 military casualties in Kursk, of which 22,000 were deaths.
Meanwhile, President Trump, at a press conference following a summit with the Irish Prime Minister, mentioned that the U.S. government is “headed to Russia,” stating, “We have achieved about half of the ceasefire, and if we can just stop Russia, a complete ceasefire is possible.” In response to a question about what could be done to pressure Russia, he replied, “There are financial actions I can take, which would be very bad for Russia,” urging Russia to accept the ceasefire proposal. White House spokesperson Caroline Leavitt told Fox News that National Security Advisor Mike Waltz was also pressuring Russia to accept the ceasefire during a call.