Following the announcement of the United States sending a delegation to Russia for a ceasefire, an interesting move came from Russian President Vladimir Putin. President Putin, dressed in military uniform, visited a command center in the Kursk region under the control of the Ukrainian army to receive updates on the current situation in the area.

Putin made his first visit to the Kursk region, which was occupied by Ukraine in August last year, to inspect Russian troops. During the visit, Putin, in military uniform, received information from Chief of the Russian General Staff Valery Gerasimov. Gerasimov informed Putin that Ukrainian troops were surrounded and that 430 Ukrainian soldiers had been taken as prisoners. He stated, “Foreign mercenaries are not subject to the Geneva Conventions.”

Putin emphasized that those captured should be treated as terrorists according to Russian laws and could be tried in Russian courts, facing years of imprisonment. He stated, “Our mission is to defeat the enemy entrenched in the Kursk region in the very near future. Russia will treat the captured Ukrainian soldiers as terrorists. Foreign mercenaries are not covered by the Geneva Conventions.”

Meanwhile, the fact that Putin’s inspection of the troops in military uniform coincided with U.S. President Donald Trump’s attempt to end the war was found to be significant. President Trump had stated today that Ukraine had accepted the agreement. He had covertly sent a message to Putin, expressing that they could resort to financially unpleasant actions to persuade Russia to a ceasefire, but it was unnecessary.