US President Donald Trump said negotiators were on their way to Russia to present a ceasefire proposal backed by Ukraine.
ADVERTISEMENTUS President Donald Trump claimed on Wednesday that Washington's negotiators were on their way "right now" for talks on a proposed ceasefire with Ukraine, after Kyiv agreed to a 30-day truce.
Trump declined to give further details, but reports suggested special envoy Steve Witkoff was set to travel to Russia this week.
Earlier, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that the ball was in "(Russia's) court," and that the only way to end the war was through negotiations.
The US visit comes as Russian state television showed images of President Vladimir Putin making a surprise visit to Moscow's troops in the western Russian region of Kursk — where Ukrainian troops launched a surprise incursion last year.
Russian state media claimed that Moscow's operation to remove Ukrainian forces from Kursk had entered its final stage, citing Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.
At the same time, Ukraine's army commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrskyi suggested his troops were pulling back to minimise losses.
"My priority has been and remains saving the lives of Ukrainian soldiers," Syrskyi said, adding his troops would move to "more favourable conditions" if necessary.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Kyiv was doing "as much as possible" to protect its soldiers and that Russia was "clearly trying to put maximum pressure on our troops."
"The key factor is our partners’ ability to ensure Russia’s readiness not to deceive but to genuinely end the war. Because right now, Russian strikes have not stopped," Zelenskyy said on Wednesday evening about the ceasefire negotiations.
Trump threatens 'devastating' things
Meanwhile, Trump told reporters on Wednesday that the US could do "devastating" things to Russia's economy should Moscow not agree to a 30-day ceasefire proposal backed by Ukraine and the US.
"I can do things financially that would be very bad for Russia, I don't want to do them, because I want to get peace," Trump said.
Trump added he had received "positive messages" about the possibility of a ceasefire.
"But a positive message means nothing," Trump said. "This is a serious situation."
For its part, the Kremlin has not publicly said whether it supports a ceasefire or not, with foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Russia was ready to talk to the US about a potential peace initiative "as early as today."
Russian state-run news agency Tass reported that Putin could speak on Ukraine, if asked, at a news conference on Thursday with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko.
ADVERTISEMENTMoscow has previously refused the idea of a temporary ceasefire agreement, claiming it would give Ukrainian troops the opportunity to regroup.
An immediate 30-day ceasefire is a core part of the joint Ukraine-US statement agreed on Tuesday, which calls for a temporary truce in the air, seas, and across the frontline.
Elsewhere, the proposal calls for the exchange of prisoners of war, the release of civilian detainees, and the return of children who have been forcibly transferred from Ukraine to Russia.