‘If they surrender’: Vladimir Putin responds to Donald Trump’s plea to ‘spare Ukrainians’

Russian President Vladimir Putin has addressed US President Donald Trump's “request” to spare Ukrainian troops retreating from Russia's Kursk region, stating that Moscow would only guarantee their safety if they “surrender.”

Speaking to the Russian Security Council, Vladimir Putin emphasised that Ukrainian authorities need to instruct their troops to lay down their arms.

Earlier in the day, Donald Trump said on Truth Social that he has requested Vladimir Putin to spare the lives of the Ukrainian troops and said there was a "very good chance" the war could end.

Calling on President Zelensky to issue an order to their troops to surrender, Vladimir Putin said, “We are sympathetic to President Trump's call. If they lay down their arms and surrender, they will be guaranteed life and dignified treatment.”

Donald Trump posted on social media after his envoy, Steve Witkoff, held a lengthy meeting with Vladimir Putin on Thursday, March 13, night in Moscow. He described the meeting between the two as “very good and productive”.

“There is a very good chance that this horrible, bloody war can finally come to an end,” Donald Trump said, adding that thousands of Ukrainian troops were “completely surrounded” by the Russian military and “in a very bad and vulnerable position”.

“I have strongly requested to President Putin that their lives be spared. This would be a horrible massacre, one not seen since World War II. God bless them all!!!”

Meanwhile, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Vladimir Putin of sabotaging diplomatic efforts to secure peace in Ukraine, over the Russian leader's response to a US-Ukrainian proposal for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire.

In a post on X, Zelensky said, “He is now doing everything he can to sabotage diplomacy by setting extremely difficult and unacceptable conditions right from the start even before a ceasefire.”

Washington and Kyiv have been advocating for an immediate 30-day truce, but Putin has cast doubt on the proposal, citing unresolved key issues.

Zelensky said the United States could exert sufficient pressure on Russia to stop its invasion because, he said, Putin “will not end the war on his own”.

“The strength of America is enough to make it happen. Strong steps are needed. Strong pressure must be applied to the only one who wants to continue this war,” Zelensky said.

(With agency inputs)