Why is Putin offering a humanitarian mission in a front-line city?

Putin made his offer to US envoys in Moscow, after Abu Dhabi talks produced a prisoner swap but no breakthrough. He proposed a mission to Kostiantynivka, a front-line city in Donetsk.

Putin says Russia controls the town and needs 5 days to clear mines. He puts the civilians still there at four to five hundred, and says that if Kyiv holds the town, it should provide security.

Putin points to Oleshky, where a truce let civilians leave. Kherson's military governor, Oleksandr Prokudin, says Russian troops used the same pause to rotate exhausted personnel and resupply weapons. Zelensky's spokesman, Dmytro Lytwyn, argues the operation moved equipment and swapped troops, and says Moscow's aim is clear. Kyiv has rejected the offer.