Support for Chancellor Olaf Scholz to lead Germany’s Social Democrats into an early election is starting to crumble within his own ranks, according to people familiar with the situation.

Germany's government says that Chancellor Olaf Scholz had a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the first such conversation in two years.

The German chancellor spoke to the Russian president over the phone on Friday. This call follows another between Trump and Putin, and although it stems from domestic political concerns, it has upset Kyiv.