After Trump request, Putin says he will let Ukraine troops in Kursk live if they surrender

FILE PHOTO: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends Russian President Vladimir Putin's annual end-of-year press conference and phone-in, in Moscow, Russia December 19, 2024. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo

WASHINGTON/MOSCOW (Reuters) -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.

Trump posted on social media after his envoy, Steve Witkoff, held a lengthy meeting with Putin on Thursday night in Moscow that Trump described as "very good and productive".