The wildly unpopular chancellor's much-criticized decision to phone the Kremlin comes three months before he faces stiff challenges from the populist left and right.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said his conversation with Vladimir Putin on Friday had given no indication of a shift in the Russian President's thinking on the war in Ukraine but defended his much-criticised decision to phone the Kremlin.

As the conflict reaches its 1,000th day next week, Ukraine is facing increasingly difficult conditions on the frontlines

The president-elect has claimed he would end the war within 24 hours and previously said Ukraine would have benefited from an earlier peace deal.