Sir Keir Starmer and Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke about ending Russia’s “brutal war” on Ukraine in their latest phone call on Easter Monday, as Vladimir Putin said he was open to bilateral talks.

The prime minister and Ukrainian president spoke on Monday afternoon, when Sir Keir “reiterated his iron-clad support for Ukraine“.

A Downing Street spokesperson added that the prime minister “said that the UK supports Ukraine’s calls for Russia to commit to a full ceasefire and that now is the time for Putin to show he is serious about ending his brutal war”.

“They discussed the latest developments on the Coalition of the Willing, and looked forward to further progress towards a just and lasting peace,” the spokesperson added.

Mr Zelenskyy later said on social media that he had a “good and detailed conversation” with the prime minister, and added Ukrainian officials will be in London for talks on ending the war with Russia on Wednesday.

“We are ready to move forward as constructively as possible, just as we have done before, to achieve an unconditional ceasefire, followed by the establishment of a real and lasting peace,” he added.

The Ukrainian president added that the 30-hour Easter truce, which both Kyiv and Moscow accuse the other of violating, showed that Russia “are prolonging the war”.

It comes as Mr Putin proposed bilateral talks with Ukraine on a longer ceasefire, which would mark the first time Russia held such talks since a failed peace deal soon after the invasion in 2022.

Speaking to a state TV reporter, the Russian president said: “We always have a positive attitude towards a truce, which is why we came up with such an initiative (the Easter truce), especially since we are talking about the bright Easter days.”

When asked about Mr Zelenskyy’s calls to extend the 30-hour ceasefire into a 30-day pause on civilian targets, he added: “This is all a subject for careful study, perhaps even bilaterally. We do not rule this out.”

The Ukrainian president said on Sunday evening that the Russian army had “violated Putin’s ceasefire more than 2,000 times” during the day, and accused Russia of “failing” to “uphold its own promise of a ceasefire”.

It also comes after Donald Trump has said he hopes Russia and Ukraine “will make a deal this week,” after he and his secretary of state Marco Rubio warned that the US will walk away from efforts to broker a peace deal unless there are clear signs of progress soon.

The US president said on his Truth Social platform that both countries would “start to do big business” with the US after ending the war.

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Last month, Ukraine accepted Mr Trump’s proposal for a 30-day truce, but Mr Putin refused to back a full 30-day ceasefire, saying crucial issues of verification had not been sorted out.

He then said he would agree not to target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. However, both sides have accused each other of breaking the moratorium on attacks on energy targets and at sea.

The Royal Navy’s flagship HMS Prince of Wales is to begin an eight-month deployment to send a “powerful message” of the UK’s naval and air power.

Operation Highmast will take in joint exercises and visits with 40 countries across the Mediterranean, Middle East, southeast Asia, Japan and Australia.

The £3bn aircraft carrier is scheduled to sail from Portsmouth on Tuesday, accompanied from the navy base by Type 45 destroyer HMS Dauntless, to join a formation of warships, supply ships and aircraft off the coast of Cornwall.

HMS Prince of Wales, as the biggest class of ship in the Royal Navy, is leading Carrier Strike Group 25 (CSG25) with the involvement of around 2,500 personnel from the Royal Navy, 592 from the Royal Air Force and 900 from the Army.

Later during the deployment, as many as 4,500 military personnel will be involved in exercises in the Indo-Pacific region. Forces from Norway, Canada and Spain are among 12 other nations taking part in operations.

The CSG’s first task will be to join a NATO exercise off France testing aerial defences before the ships move on to the Mediterranean to work with an Italian-led carrier force and then head east via the Red Sea.

Other military assets include a contingent of up to 24 Royal Air Force F-35B Lightning fighter jets, Merlin Mk2 anti-submarine helicopters, Merlin Mk4 Commando and Wildcat helicopters along with T-150 Malloy and Puma drones.

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Commodore James Blackmore, CSG commander, said the deployment would send a “powerful message” of the UK’s naval and air power.

He said: “It’s about supporting key trade routes that exist from the Indo-Pacific region to the UK, and supporting partners and allies in the region, showing that we are there as a capable and credible force should it be required.

“Operation Highmast will demonstrate credible deterrence and our support to NATO and the rules-based international order.”

Defence Secretary, John Healey MP, called it an “immensely complex operation” which sends “a powerful message of deterrence to any adversary”.

“This is a unique opportunity for the UK to operate in close coordination with our partners and allies in a deployment that not only shows our commitment to security and stability, but also provides an opportunity to bolster our own economy and boost British trade and exports,” he added.

US vice president JD Vance has arrived in Delhi for a four-day visit to India as the countries look to negotiate on tariffs, a bilateral trade deal and strengthen their ties.

Mr Vance was accompanied by his wife Usha – whose parents moved from India to the US – their three children Ewan, Vivek and Mirabel and fellow government officials as he landed on Monday morning.

The visit comes weeks after US President Donald Trump imposed and then paused a sweeping tariff regime against around 60 countries, including India.

In a statement after their meeting in New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s office said he “welcomed the significant progress” in negotiations for an expected trade deal between the US and India.

It added that he and Mr Vance “noted continued efforts towards enhancing cooperation in energy, defence, strategic technologies and other areas”, and also “exchanged views on various regional and global issues of mutual interest, and called for dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward”.

Mr Modi also “conveyed his warm greetings to President Trump” ahead of his visit to India later this year.

An announcement was expected on the countries’ TRUST (Transforming Relationship Utilising Strategic Technology) partnership, a programme aimed at strengthening their cooperation in defence, critical minerals, AI, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, energy and space.

The Trump administration is also pushing India to buy defence equipment.

The US is India’s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade valued at $190bn, with a trade deficit of about $46bn in India’s favour.

Both countries are engaged in negotiating a bilateral trade agreement and aim to double trade to $500bn by 2030.

Mr Trump has previously labelled India a “tariff king” and a “big abuser” on trade. He also recently shared a report which stated Indian tariffs on agricultural products were among the highest in the world.

The US president had slapped a 26% tariff on India, calling it a discounted rate against an average 52% duty on American products.

Over the weekend, Mr Vance met Pope Francis in one of the pontiff’s last public appearances before his death on Easter Monday.

Visit comes amid rising tensions with China

Mr Vance’s visit is also aimed at strategically balancing China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region, with India seen as a counterweight of the two most populous countries.

China has warned it will take “resolute and reciprocal” countermeasures against countries that strike deals with the US at the expense of Chinese interests.

Relations between India and China have been tense over the years.

The two countries, separated by the Himalayan mountain range, share a 2,000-mile border, most of which is not demarcated.

In 2020, in Galwan, soldiers of both countries had a face-off in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed. There was a national uproar and since then diplomatic relations have been low.

High-level military talks have been taking place to sort the border disputes, but have so far been inconclusive.

India’s move to strengthen ties with the US will increase friction with its northern neighbour, as China sees itself being isolated and targeted by the Trump administration.

Last week, China’s President Xi Jinping embarked on a tour of Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia, and said: “There are no winners in trade wars and tariff wars.”

Meanwhile, India has raised concerns over the treatment of Indian students who have received visa revocation notices in the US.

A survey by the American Immigration Lawyers Association found 50% of those reporting revocations were Indian. The US government has denied targeting Indians specifically with its actions.