President Vladimir Putin further cemented his grip on power and sought to counter Russia's isolation from the West over the war in Ukraine. But he faced continuing challenges, with a deadly attack by gunmen in Moscow and an incursion by Kyiv's troops on his territory.

Vladimir Putin says Russia is 'striving' to end the conflict in Ukraine. The Russian President said the Government was prepared to use intermediate-range hypersonic ballistic missiles or to use more powerful intermediate-range weapons.

Vladimir Putin said Slovakia's prime minister offered on his recent visit to Moscow to host potential talks between Russia and Ukraine. Robert Fico made the trip as a halt to Russian gas deliveries via Ukraine beckons.

Vladimir Putin has apologised for the Azerbaijan Airlines crash but stopped short of accepting responsibility for what he described as a “tragic incident”.

Russia's Vladimir Putin on Saturday apologised to Azerbaijan's president for a "tragic incident" which happened in Russian airspace involving an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane that crashed after air defences were used against Ukrainian drones.

Putin apologized for the “tragic incident” in Russian airspace, but the Kremlin did not take responsibility for downing the Azerbaijan Airlines flight.

The long-range missiles provided by the United States and Britain were used to strike inside Russian territory, despite concerns that their use would escalate the conflict. Kyiv’s stockpiles are running out.