Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer stressed on Monday that President Vladimir Putin continued to trust in Istanbul peace talks with Ukraine and that the Russian leader said he would hold talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on the matter.

Nehammer was the first European leader to meet Putin since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine Feb. 24.

He said he held "very direct, open and tough" talks with the Russian leader just outside Moscow on Monday but said the meeting did not leave him optimistic about the chances of diplomacy.

Describing Putin as having "massively entered into a logic of war," Nehammer told reporters: "If you’re asking me whether I am optimistic or pessimistic, I’m rather pessimistic."

"Peace talks are always very time-intensive while military logic says: 'Don't spend too much time and go directly into battle,'" he added.

The chancellor said there was "very little interest on the Russian side in a direct meeting" with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, while he stressed the one glimmer of hope was Putin’s continued interest in the Istanbul peace talks.

"Putin said that he still trusts the peace talks that began in Istanbul and that he will meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on this issue," Nehammer was cited by Anadolu Agency (AA) as saying.

Turkey, a NATO member with close ties to both Kyiv and Moscow, hosted the highest-level Russian-Ukrainian peace talks late last month since the military campaign started more than six weeks ago and has been encouraging both sides to continue negotiations.

It hosted face-to-face talks between Russian and Ukrainian officials in Istanbul after a first-round in the southern province of Antalya. Ankara has offered to host future peace talks.

Erdoğan says the meeting in Istanbul had given "meaningful impetus" to efforts to end the war in Ukraine and has been reiterating his proposal to bring together Zelenskyy and Putin at a meeting in Turkey.

Nehammer's visit came a day after he had a phone call with Erdoğan to discuss the Russia-Ukraine war and steps to be taken to enhance Turkey-Austria relations.

The Turkish president told Nehammer that Turkey is ready to provide all types of support to facilitate peace between Ukraine and Russia.

Neutral Austria, which obtains 80% of its natural gas from Russia, generally maintains closer ties to Moscow than much of the EU, but recently that has not been the case.

Nehammer has expressed solidarity with Ukraine and denounced apparent Russian war crimes, while his government has joined other EU countries in expelling Russian diplomats, albeit only a fraction of the large Russian diplomatic presence there.

"This is not a friendly visit," Nehammer was quoted as saying in a statement issued by his office shortly after the meeting at Putin’s official Novo-Ogaryovo residence near Moscow.

A spokesperson for Nehammer said the meeting lasted 75 minutes, which is relatively short by Putin’s standards.

Nehammer reiterated his comments that he had hoped to help bring an end to the conflict or improvements for Ukraine’s beleaguered civilian population, such as humanitarian corridors. He didn't disclose Putin’s response.

"The conversation with President Putin was very direct, open and tough," Nehammer said in the statement.

Having been visibly moved by telephone conversations with Zelenskyy, Nehammer visited Ukraine on Saturday to show support for Kyiv.

He said he felt meeting Putin was his duty to "leave no stone unturned" in seeking an end to the conflict or humanitarian improvements.

"My most important message to Putin was that this war must finally end because, in a war, there are only losers on both sides," he said in the statement.

First of 100 tries?

At a news conference on Monday evening, Nehammer said it was important to tell Putin one-on-one that his views were not shared by other countries and that the longer the war lasted, the tougher Western sanctions against Russia would become.

"(Telling him) once will not be enough. Ten times will not be enough. It might have to be done 100 times, but I think it is necessary to do everything to ensure there is peace again and people in Ukraine can live in safety," Nehammer said.

Nehammer said he said he spoke to European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz after the meeting and said he had impressed on them the "need for more such meetings" to directly express European outrage at Russia’s actions.

The Austrian government had requested the meeting be held behind closed doors with no joint pictures or statements from the two leaders.

"I mentioned the serious war crimes in Bucha and other locations and stressed that all those responsible must be brought to justice," Nehammer said.

Russia denies its forces have committed war crimes.

On the topic of sanctions, Nehammer said he had "told President Putin very clearly that the sanctions will remain and be intensified as long as people keep dying in Ukraine."