After clinging for more than seven months to a gradually shrinking area, Ukraine has seen its position worsen sharply in the past week.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has made his agreement to a US-proposed ceasefire in the war against Ukraine conditional on his previously stated maximum demands in the more than three-year armed conflict.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Putin was "preparing to reject" a US-Ukraine backed proposal for interim peace. View on euronews

Russia’s stalling contrasted with Trump’s rush for a valuable breakthrough as his trade policies set off stock market slumps and cast a cloud over the economy. “I think we’re going to be in very good shape to get it done. We want to get it over with,” Trump said at the Oval Office on Thursday, in an outburst of optimism that jarred with reality.

A top aide to President Vladimir Putin said Russia wanted a long-term solution and not a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine as US officials arrived in Moscow for talks.