Sudzha, with a reported population of about 5,000 people before the offensive, was the biggest town seized by Kyiv's forces last year as part of their surprise cross-border offensive. The Russian army,

President Trump and President Vladimir V. Putin both claimed that Ukrainian forces were surrounded. Ukraine’s top military commander vowed to “hold the line.”

U.S. President Donald Trump urged Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin on Friday to spare Ukrainian troops that Russia is pushing out of its Kursk region, an appeal Putin said he would honor if they surrendered.