Russia said on Thursday there was no doubt that its troops would soon complete the task of clearing out Ukrainian forces from Russia's Kursk region where they have held a pocket of territory for more than seven months.

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.

In an attempt to divert Russian forces from the brutal frontlines in eastern Ukraine – and embarrass Vladimir Putin – Ukraine smashed across the border into the Kursk region in August, the biggest attack on Russian territory since the Nazi invasion of 1941.

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.

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.

Russian President Vladimir Putin visited a command center in Kursk on Wednesday, ordering troops there to "destroy" all Ukrainian formations.

President Vladimir Putin of Russia made a surprise visit late Wednesday to western Kursk and called for troops to rapidly expel occupying Ukrainian forces as U.S. officials head to Moscow.