"Putin really surprised a lot of people," the US president said on Sunday night. "He talks nice and then he bombs everybody in the evening."

Putin told Trump during the call that Russia won’t back down from its goals in Ukraine, according to Yuri Ushakov, a close adviser to the Russian president, despite the U.S. leader’s calls for a speedy end of the conflict.

Trump said there is “no reason” for Russia’s continued attacks on Ukraine and complained that reaching a ceasefire in the three-year-old war Putin launched has been “tougher” than expected, while crediting Kyiv’s forces for bravery as they’ve battled back Russia’s invasion.