Putin praises US peace efforts before Trump meeting

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday praised US efforts aimed at ending the Ukrainian conflict as "rather energetic and sincere."

Ahead of his Friday trip to Alaska to meet with US President Donald Trump, Putin gathered together senior officials at the Kremlin to brief them on the progress of negotiations over Ukraine.

Opening the meeting, Putin said he would discuss the ongoing bilateral talks with the Ukrainian delegation and update the group on the current situation with the US administration.

"I want to update you on where we stand with today's American administration, which, as everyone knows quite well, is making rather energetic and sincere efforts, in my view, to halt hostilities, end the crisis, and reach agreements beneficial to all parties involved in this conflict," he said.

Putin added that "these efforts aim to create long-term conditions for peace not just between our countries but across Europe and globally, especially if we manage to achieve subsequent agreements in the field of strategic offensive arms control."

Putin and Trump are set to meet Friday in the US state of Alaska.