Russia has key interests in common with the United States and needs to work with it on a common agenda, Russian President Vladimir Putin said yesterday in a television interview.

In his comments to the state-run Rossiya channel, Putin appeared to soften his anti-American rhetoric after being highly critical. Relations between Moscow and Washington and other Western powers have soured over the conflict in Russia's neighbour Ukraine, sinking to an all-time low. "We have disagreements on several issues on the international agenda. But at the same time there is something that unites us, that forces us to work together," Putin said.