“We know that the trip cannot take place at this time because the Kiev regime has completely rejected this possibility and such a proposal. What are they hiding in Kyiv? They are hiding the desperate situation of their troops in the aforementioned areas,” Peskov told the press.

On October 30, the Russian Ministry of Defense received an order from President Vladimir Putin to guarantee access for foreign journalists, including Ukrainian media, to the areas where Kiev troops are besieged in the towns of Kupyansk, Dmitrov, and Krasnoarmeysk.

In that context, the Russian command expressed its willingness to cease fighting for five or six hours in the areas where Ukrainian troops are surrounded to allow access to foreign media representatives.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, for its part, rejected the proposal, warning that any attempt by foreign journalists to visit territories under Russian control would be considered a violation of national law.

jdt/arm/mem/gfa