United States (US) officials are in Moscow to discuss a potential ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. Special envoy Steve Witkoff arrived on Thursday morning to try to convince Russia to accept a 30-day ceasefire, which Ukraine agreed to earlier this week in talks with the US. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov says talks were “taking place in a calm manner” – but rejected the proposal, saying it would amount to nothing more than a temporary respite for the Ukrainian military and a chance for it to regroup. The US visit comes as the Russian military claimed to have recaptured Sudzha – a key town in the Kursk region that Ukraine invaded last year in a surprise attack. President Vladimir Putin visited Kursk on Wednesday and met military commanders, who told him
