For Trump, Putin is worn out by a conflict that is ruining his image

The Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, and the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, emphasised in a phone call their commitment to continue working together to achieve peace in Ukraine.

"Rubio applauded the agreements on the exchange of prisoners of war and on the tabling by each side (Ukraine and Russia) of the conditions they deem necessary to reach a truce, and highlighted Washington's willingness to continue facilitating the search for a solution," can be read in a statement from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs published on Telegram.

It adds that the Russian side "confirmed Moscow's willingness to continue cooperating with its American colleagues in this context".

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump lamented the erosion that the war in Ukraine has generated for the Russian and Ukrainian presidents, Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, one "tired" of a conflict that has damaged his image and the other increasingly burdened by his constant requests for help.

(MH with AmBar - Source: Agency - Photo: © DPA - Anadolu - Kremlin Press Office - Handout)