A meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin has been agreed in principle and will happen in the “coming days”, the Kremlin said on Thursday.

Trump revealed a day before that he was hopeful of a meeting with his Russian counterpart in an attempt to end the war in Ukraine. It would be his first in-person discussion with Putin during his second term.

“At the suggestion of the American side, an agreement in principle was made to hold a bilateral meeting at the highest level in the coming days,” Putin’s longtime foreign policy aide, Yury Ushakov, said in a statement.

The comments came on the eve of Trump’s deadline ultimatum to Putin, challenging him to end the war in Ukraine or face tough new economic sanctions.

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In recent weeks, the American leader has adopted far tougher language than his historical warmth toward his Russian opposite number — decrying Russia’s continued bombing of Ukrainian civilians and pledging arms sales to Ukraine via Europe.

Amid that hardening stance, Wednesday saw Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, enjoying a cordial visit to Moscow with Putin and his close friend and investment chief, Kirill Dmitriev.