Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump have held a 50-minute phone call to discuss the escalating situation in the Middle East and Ukraine peace talks

Splits have opened up in the G7 approach to Russia after Donald Trump signalled his reluctance to impose more US sanctions on Moscow despite a European push to heap further pressure on Vladimir Putin.

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to U.S. President Donald Trump for 50 minutes on Saturday, condemning the Israeli military operation against Iran and expressing concern about the risks of escalation,

Russian President Vladimir Putin called President Donald Trump to wish him a happy birthday and speak about the escalating conflict in the Middle East on Saturday. Putin spoke with Trump about the Russian president’s conversations with the leaders of Iran and Israel as tensions heat up.

US President Donald Trump on Saturday (local time) revealed that he received a call from Russian President Vladimir Putin on his 79th birthday and and talked about the war between Israel and Iran, which both leaders agreed "should end.

Ukraine attacked a Russian drone factory in the Tatarstan region, located about 1,200km away from the frontline.At least one person was killed and 13 others wounded in Sunday's attack, according to regional governor Rustam Minnikhanov.

Trump has generally veered away from overtly criticizing Putin while openly berating Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky, but has repeatedly condemned Russia's lethal airstrikes and floated that the Kremlin could be "tapping us along."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in an interview with Newsmax, said that a warm dialogue between the US and Russia will not stop President Vladimir Putin. Strong sanctions are needed for that.