Ukraine war update: Putin says he will ‘take seriously’ Trump’s intention to end war | World news

Vladimir Putin has said his preference for Joe Biden remains unchanged after watching excerpts from the debate between the US President and Donald Trump.

When asked by a state television reporter whether Biden or Trump was better, whether his publicly expressed preference for Biden had changed after the debate and whether he had seen this, Putin said: “Nothing has changed.”

“Didn’t we know what was coming? We knew,” the Russian president added.

Putin has repeatedly expressed that he would prefer Joe Biden to Trump as the next US president, even after Biden called the Kremlin chief a “crazy bastard.”

Mr Putin said he had seen parts of the debate between Mr Biden and Mr Trump but he had other things to do.

“I have seen some fragments,” Putin said. “But I have enough to do.”

When asked about Trump’s comments that he could quickly end the war in Ukraine if he won the election, Putin said that Russia takes him seriously but knows nothing about the details of Trump’s peace proposals.

“We take the fact that Mr. Trump, as a presidential candidate, declares that he is ready and wants to end the war in Ukraine completely seriously,” he said.

What else did Putin say today?

The Russian president also reiterated that Moscow will not declare a ceasefire in Ukraine until Kyiv takes steps that are “irreversible” and acceptable to the Kremlin.

He said it was pointless for Russia to try to appeal to the Ukrainian parliament about Moscow’s ideas on how to resolve the conflict between the two countries.

Putin said last month that Russia would only end the war in Ukraine if Kiev gave up its NATO ambitions and handed over all four provinces claimed by Moscow. However, Kiev immediately rejected this demand, saying it would amount to capitulation.