President Vladimir Putin made a surprise visit to Russia’s occupied Kursk region on Wednesday, as the Kremlin considers a US proposal for a 30-day ceasefire with his troops closing in on Ukraine’s only territorial bargaining chip.

President Vladimir Putin donned military fatigues for a surprise visit to troops in Russia's western Kursk region on Wednesday where he ordered them to press their lightning advance and swiftly retake the rest of the area from Ukrainian forces.

Vladimir Putin has vowed to push Ukrainian forces out of Kursk as he made his first visit to the region since Kyiv's incursion. In the last few days, Russian troops entered the town of Sudzha near the border that had been occupied by the Ukrainian forces since their surprise incursion into the region last August.