By Dmitry Antonov MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Moscow hoped for more peace talks with Ukraine but that the momentum of the war was in its favour, signalling no shift in his stance despite a looming sanctions deadline from Washington.

He said Russian troops were attacking Ukraine along the entire front line and that the momentum was in their favour, citing the announcement by his Defence Ministry on Thursday th

Kremlin officials have sought to appear unfazed by U.S. President Donald Trump's shortened timeline to reach a peace deal with Kyiv, accusing Trump of issuing ultimatums that amount to war mongering.

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff was expected to arrive in Israel on Thursday in a bid to salvage Gaza ceasefire talks and tackle a humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave, where a global hunger monitor has warned that famine was unfolding.

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff visited Gaza where they saw how the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation is distributing aid and bypassing Hamas.