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.

Russia said on Tuesday that its troops had retaken over 100 square kilometres (38.6 square miles) of territory and 12 settlements in its Kursk region as part of an offensive to force the Ukrainian army to flee from western Russia.

A Russian offensive supported by North Korean troops in the past few days has made a serious advance in Russia's Kursk region northeast of Ukraine, breaking through Ukrainian positions and forcing them to withdraw to new defense lines,