U.S. President-elect Trump, who has vowed to swiftly end the conflict, is returning to the White House at a time of Russian ascendancy. Moscow controls a chunk of Ukraine about the size of the American state of Virginia and is advancing at the fastest pace since the early days of the 2022 invasion.

While pressure is mounting on the incoming administration, the screws are tightening on Moscow, whose war expenditures are sending the economy down

Russia opposes simply freezing the conflict in Ukraine because Moscow needs a "solid and long-term peace" that resolves the core reasons for the crisis, President Vladimir Putin's foreign intelligence chief said on Tuesday.