Donald Trump has reportedly confirmed that he has talked to Vladimir Putin on the phone to discuss ending the war in Ukraine.

The US President said that he believes the Russian leader “does care” about the number of people being killed.

“He (Putin) wants to see people stop dying,” Mr Trump told the New York Post.

“All those dead people. Young, young, beautiful people. They’re like your kids, two million of them – and for no reason.”

In the interview, which the newspaper said took place onboard Air Force One on Friday, Mr Trump said that he had “better not say,” when asked how many times the two leaders have spoken.

He said he maintained a “good relationship” with Putin. 

In late January, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Putin was ready to hold a phone call with Mr Trump and that Moscow was waiting for word from Washington that it is ready too.

On Friday, Mr Trump said he would probably meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky next week to discuss the end of the war.

The war, which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, will mark its third anniversary on February 24. Thousands of people, the vast majority of them Ukrainian, have been killed during the conflict.

Mr Trump told the New York Post that he had a concrete plan to end the war. But he did not disclose further details.

“I hope it’s fast,” he said. 

“Every day people are dying. This war is so bad in Ukraine. I want to end this damn thing.”