A brief ceasefire would be "nothing more than a temporary respite for the Ukrainian military," a senior Kremlin aide said on Thursday.

The Moscow talks are crucial to Trump's efforts to secure a 30-day ceasefire in the war between Russia and Ukraine. The visit could also lead to a phone call between Trump and Putin on Thursday. Driving the news: On Tuesday,

Trump administration officials are reaching out to their Russian counterparts as the White House says the ball is in Moscow’s court to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine. National security adviser Mike Waltz spoke with his Russian counterpart on Wednesday “in a pursuit of ending this war and striking a peace deal with Russia

The front line inside Ukraine has become more static, Ukrainian soldiers say, even as Russia regains ground in its own Kursk region.

By Guy Faulconbridge and Andrew Osborn MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russian President Vladimir Putin's top foreign policy aide said on Thursday he had told Washington that a 30-day ceasefire proposed by the United States to pause the war in Ukraine would simply give Kyiv's forces a much-needed battlefield respite.

Russia has announced a cross-border offensive had captured territory in Ukraine's Sumy region for the first time since 2022 as Ukraine struggles to hold onto territory in Russia's neighbouring Kursk region.