Want to end war, 'the sooner, the better', says Russian President Putin

The Kremlin accused Kyiv and Washington of turning a deaf ear to its concerns and charged that the US was using Ukraine as a ground to weaken Russia.

It came as President Vladimir Putin insisted Russia was aiming for a speedy end to the fighting.

“Our goal is to end this conflict. We are striving for this, we will seek to make sure that it all ends, and the sooner, the better”. “All conflicts end, some way or another, with talks. The faster our adversaries (in Kyiv) understand that, the better it will be,” Putin said.

They blamed the closure of diplomatic channels