Russian leader Vladimir Putin has stepped up diplomatic contacts on the eve of the visit of Vladimir Zelensky and a group of European leaders to the White House. He called the presidents of Brazil, India and South Africa. This move was to demonstrate that Moscow is not in international isolation. This is reported by The Guardian.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he hoped Russia's Vladimir Putin would move forward on ending the war in Ukraine but conceded that the Kremlin leader may not want to make a deal at all, adding this would create a "rough situation" for Putin.