ROME (AP) — Pope Francis marked the 12th anniversary of his papacy Thursday with increasingly positive medical updates four weeks into his hospitalization for double pneumonia.
The pope spent another tranquil night, the Vatican said in its brief morning statement.
Click to Gallery
A poster depicting Pope Francis reading "happy anniversary" is seen in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Thursday, March 13, 2025, where the Pontiff is hospitalized since Friday, Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
People pray for Pope Francis in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Thursday, March 13, 2025, where the Pontiff is hospitalized since Friday, Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
People pray for Pope Francis in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Thursday, March 13, 2025, where the Pontiff is hospitalized since Friday, Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
People pray for Pope Francis in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Thursday, March 13, 2025, where the Pontiff is hospitalized since Friday, Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Catholic worshippers walk towards St. Peter's Square on a rainy day in Rome, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Catholic worshippers arrive to St. Peter's Square on a rainy day at the Vatican, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A woman looks at the "Angels Unawares" boat sculpture by Canadian artist Timothy P. Schmalz on a rainy day in St. Peter's square at The Vatican, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
People pray as they follow a live broadcasted Rosary prayer for Pope Francis, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A woman shelters against the rain as she follows a live broadcasted Rosary prayer for Pope Francis, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A couple kiss in St. Peter's Square at The Vatican, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A chest X-ray confirmed improvements, the Vatican said on Wednesday, just two days after days after doctors declared he’s no longer in imminent danger of death. The latest medical bulletin said that the 88-year-old pope’s condition remained stable, but indicated a complex picture considering his overall fragility.
The Holy See hasn’t said how the anniversary of his election as the 266th pope might be commemorated. It is a public holiday at the Vatican and Masses are planned in his honor at churches in Rome. No medical bulletins will be issued.
Francis on Wednesday remotely followed a Lenten spiritual retreat that has been a mainstay of his papacy. He continues to receive high flows of oxygen through nasal tubes during the day and a non-invasive mechanical mask to aid his rest at night.
The former Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected on the fifth ballot of the 2013 conclave, which was called after Pope Benedict XVI resigned.
While Francis has praised Benedict’s humility in stepping down and said he might follow in his footsteps, more recently he has said the papacy is a job for life.
Another milestone comes Friday, when Francis marks four weeks of hospitalization.
A poster depicting Pope Francis reading "happy anniversary" is seen in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Thursday, March 13, 2025, where the Pontiff is hospitalized since Friday, Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
People pray for Pope Francis in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Thursday, March 13, 2025, where the Pontiff is hospitalized since Friday, Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
People pray for Pope Francis in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Thursday, March 13, 2025, where the Pontiff is hospitalized since Friday, Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
People pray for Pope Francis in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Thursday, March 13, 2025, where the Pontiff is hospitalized since Friday, Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Catholic worshippers walk towards St. Peter's Square on a rainy day in Rome, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Catholic worshippers arrive to St. Peter's Square on a rainy day at the Vatican, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A woman looks at the "Angels Unawares" boat sculpture by Canadian artist Timothy P. Schmalz on a rainy day in St. Peter's square at The Vatican, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
People pray as they follow a live broadcasted Rosary prayer for Pope Francis, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A woman shelters against the rain as she follows a live broadcasted Rosary prayer for Pope Francis, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A couple kiss in St. Peter's Square at The Vatican, Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Russian forces have driven the Ukrainian army out of the biggest town in Russia's Kursk border region, officials claimed Thursday, as U.S. officials sought the Kremlin's response to a proposed 30-day ceasefire in the three-year war that Ukraine has endorsed.
The Russian Defense Ministry’s claim that it recaptured the town of Sudzha, hours after President Vladimir Putin visited his commanders in Kursk and wore military fatigues, could not be independently verified. Ukrainian officials made no immediate comment on the claim.
The renewed Russian military push and Putin's high-profile visit to his troops came as U.S. President Donald Trump presses for a diplomatic end to the war. The U.S. on Tuesday lifted its March 3 suspension of military aid for Kyiv after senior U.S. and Ukrainian officials made progress on how to stop the fighting during talks held in Saudi Arabia.
Trump said Wednesday that “it’s up to Russia now” as his administration presses Moscow to agree to the ceasefire. The U.S. president has made veiled threats to hit Russia with new sanctions if it won’t engage with peace efforts.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday that U.S. negotiators were on their way to Russia, but he wouldn’t comment on Moscow’s view of the ceasefire proposal.
“Before the talks start, and they haven’t started yet, it would be wrong to talk about it in public,” he told reporters.
Senior U.S. officials say they hope to see Russia stop attacks on Ukraine within the next few days.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News that national security adviser Mike Waltz spoke Wednesday with his Russian counterpart. She also confirmed that Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, will head to Moscow for talks with Russian officials, possibly including Putin.
By signaling its openness to a ceasefire, Ukraine has presented the Kremlin with a dilemma at a time when the Russian military has the upper hand in the war — whether to accept a truce and abandon hopes of making new gains, or reject the offer and risk derailing a cautious rapprochement with Washington.
The Ukrainian army’s foothold inside Russia has been under intense pressure for months from a renewed effort by Russian forces, backed by North Korean troops. Ukraine's daring incursion last August led to the first occupation of Russian soil by foreign troops since World War II and embarrassed the Kremlin.
Speaking to commanders Wednesday, Putin said he expected the military “to completely free the Kursk region from the enemy in the nearest future.”
Putin added that in the future “it’s necessary to think about creating a security zone alongside the state border,” in a signal that Moscow could try to expand its territorial gains by capturing parts of Ukraine’s neighboring Sumy region. That idea could complicate a ceasefire deal.
Ukraine launched the raid in a bid to counter the unceasingly glum news from the front line, as well as draw Russian troops away from the battlefield inside Ukraine and gain a bargaining chip in any peace talks. But the incursion didn’t significantly change the dynamic of the war.
The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, assessed late Wednesday that Russian forces were in control of Sudzha.
Ukraine’s top military head, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, said late Wednesday that Russian aviation had carried out an unprecedented number of strikes on Kursk and that as a result Sudzha had been almost completely destroyed. He did not comment on whether Ukraine still controlled the settlement but said it was “maneuvering (troops) to more advantageous lines.”
Meanwhile, Major General Dmytro Krasylnykov, commander of Ukraine’s Northern Operational Command, which includes the Kursk region, was dismissed from his post, he told Ukrainian media outlet Suspilne on Wednesday. He told the outlet he was not given a reason for his dismissal, saying “I’m guessing, but I don’t want to talk about it yet.”
Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
In this image made from video released by the Russian Presidential Press Service, on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, accompanied by Russian Chief of General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov, second left, visits military headquarters in the Kursk region of Russia. (Russian Presidential Press Service via AP)
In this image made from video released by the Russian Presidential Press Service, on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, accompanied by Russian Chief of General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov, second left, visits military headquarters in the Kursk region of Russia. (Russian Presidential Press Service via AP)
In this image made from video released by the Russian Presidential Press Service, on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a visit to military headquarters in the Kursk region of Russia. (Russian Presidential Press Service via AP)
In this image made from video released by the Russian Presidential Press Service, on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a visit to military headquarters in the Kursk region of Russia. (Russian Presidential Press Service via AP)
In this image made from video released by the Russian Presidential Press Service, on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin accompanied by Russian Chief of General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov, behind Putin, visits military headquarters in the Kursk region of Russia. (Russian Presidential Press Service via AP)
FILE - A Ukrainian soldier walks past at a city hall in Sudzha, Kursk region, Russia, Friday, Aug. 16, 2024. This image was approved by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry before publication. (AP Photo, File)
In this image made from video released by the Russian Presidential Press Service, on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, shakes hands with Russian Chief of General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov as he visits military headquarters in the Kursk region of Russia. (Russian Presidential Press Service via AP)
