Ukraine-Russia war latest: Putin picks ex-bodyguard for senior role - fuelling succession rumours

Russia says it hopes nuclear deterrence will "knock some sense" into the West over plans to send fighter jets to Ukraine.

In a briefing today, foreign minister Sergei Lavrov says Russia regards Belgium's pledge to send US-made F-16 warplanes to Kyiv as a "signal action".

He adds, according to the RIA state news agency: "They are trying to tell us that the United States and NATO would stop at nothing in Ukraine.

"Nevertheless, we hope that the Russian-Belarusian drills on the use of non-strategic nuclear weapons that are under way now will knock some sense into our opponents by reminding them about the catastrophic consequences of further nuclear escalation."

Russia has been carrying out nuclear exercises throughout May, and are currently conducting joint air force and air defence ministry drills with Belarus.

For context: Earlier this week, Belgium agreed to send Ukraine 30 F-16 fighter jets by 2028. 

It marked part of a security pact Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Alexander De Croo, the Belgian prime minister, signed in Brussels on Tuesday.

As part of the agreement, Belgium will also provide Ukraine with at least €977m (£832m) in military aid.

After securing more NATO support, Mr Zelenskyy again demanded the West lift restrictions on the use of supplied weaponry to hit targets in Russia, saying it was "unfair" that Ukraine could not strike back.

Ukraine says it shot down seven Russian missiles and 32 drones over Kharkiv overnight.

Kyiv's air force commander said on Telegram that Russian forces attacked "military facilities and critical infrastructure in Ukraine" with 51 missiles and drones - but did not provide additional details.

Kharkiv mayor Ihor Terekhov added in a separate statement that four people were injured in the attack.

It comes four days after a Russian strike on a hardware store in the city killed at least 16 people and injured more than 40.

Welcome back to our live coverage of the war in Ukraine, as tensions mount over the use of Western weapons to attack military targets on Russian soil.

The Kremlin has been sabre-rattling over the issue, making thinly veiled threats to the West, while Ukraine's allies remain divided.

Before we resume our live updates and analysis, here is a recap of the key moments that occurred over the last 24 hours.

• Vladimir Putin appointed Alexei Dyumin, his former bodyguard, as secretary of the advisory State Council, fuelling speculation about his presidential potential;
  
• France and Germany's leaders said Ukraine should be allowed to hit military sites inside Russia from which missiles were being fired at Ukrainian territory, but not other targets;
• Police searched the office of a European Parliament employee in Brussels over suspected Russian interference;
  
• Prisoner of war exchanges between Russia and Ukraine have been suspended for several months, Russia's human rights commissioner said.

We're pausing our live coverage of the conflict for the day, but if you're just joining us, here is a recap of the key moments.

• Vladimir Putin appointed Alexei Dyumin, his former bodyguard, as secretary of the advisory State Council, fuelling speculation about his presidential potential;
  
• France and Germany's leaders said Ukraine should be allowed to hit military sites inside Russia from which missiles were being fired at Ukrainian territory, but not other targets;
• Police searched the office of a European Parliament employee in Brussels over suspected Russian interference;
  
• Prisoner of war exchanges between Russia and Ukraine have been suspended for several months, Russia's human rights commissioner said.

A Russian airstrike has hit more than 100 houses in an eastern Ukrainian village, local authorities say.

The high-explosive aerial bomb wounded seven people in the Donetsk region, according to the Ukrainian National Police.

The attack took place seven miles from Kramatorsk, a key Ukrainian-held city. 

A four-year-old child was among those injured.

Vladimir Putin has appointed Alexei Dyumin, his former bodyguard, as secretary of the advisory State Council, fuelling speculation about his presidential potential.

The president has brought Mr Dyumin, 51, closer to the centre of power since his re-election in March, having made him an aide overseeing the defence industry this month.

The details of his new role are unknown.

"Russia's elite is abuzz with the appointment of Dyumin," Sergei Markov, a former Kremlin adviser and Putin supporter, said on Telegram.

"This is seen as confirmation that Dyumin is the future president of Russia, Putin's choice," Mr Markov said, adding that this was something that had long been rumoured.

There is no public debate or reliable information about who
might eventually succeed Putin, who is 71 and is expected to
rule for years, but his appointments are scrutinised for signs of whether he is lining up a potential candidate to one day take over from him.

Being publicly identified as a potential successor carries certain risks attached to being seen as a challenger.

Asked about Dyumin's appointment, the Kremlin said it was part of a rotation - he is taking over the role from Igor Levitin, 72 - and said he would look at how the State Council would function.

A German government spokesperson says agreements on how Ukraine deploys weapons supplied by the West are confidential.

They batted away questions on whether Ukrainian forces could use them to strike into Russian territory. 

The government was pressed on the issue at a news conference after French and German leaders said Kyiv should be allowed to hit military sites inside Russia from which missiles were being fired at Ukrainian territory.

Yesterday, Vladimir Putin tried to frame his invasion across the Kharkiv border, opening up a second front, as a result of the West failing to prevent Kyiv from attacking Russian targets.

Ukrainian drones have the capability of striking a target up to 1,550 miles away, but Moscow has been protected, a senior Russian airforce official has said.

The comments, made by Dmitry Bogdanov, head of the radio-electronic warfare department of the Russian Aerospace Forces, suggest a wide swath of Russian territory bordering Ukraine is vulnerable to attack.

"The enemy is not standing still," Mr Bogdanov was quoted as saying by state news agency Tass. 

"Now unmanned aerial vehicles can traverse an area of up to 2,500 kilometres, and many [Russian] regions are aware of this." 

It comes after a Kyiv source told Reuters on Monday that a Ukrainian drone had attempted its deepest strike yet, targeting a Russian early-warning military radar system in the Orenburg region, almost 1,000 miles away.

Since the start of the year, drone attacks have also struck critical oil refining infrastructure in Russia.

Ukraine does not officially confirm or deny it is attacking refineries inside Russia, but it says such sites are legitimate targets as they aid Moscow's military effort.

A major barrage in May last year saw two drones fly towards the Kremlin complex overlooking Red Square before they were destroyed.

Police have searched the office of a European Parliament employee in Brussels over suspected Russian interference, Belgium's federal prosecutor's office says.

Officers also raided the employee's residence and the EU Parliament's French headquarters.

It comes after an investigation was launched last month by the Belgian prime minister, who said his intelligence service uncovered a network trying to undermine support for Ukraine.

"The searches are part of a case of interference, passive corruption and membership of a criminal organisation and relates to indications of Russian interference, whereby members of the European Parliament were approached and paid to promote Russian propaganda via the Voice of Europe news website," prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said they believe the employee played "a significant role in this".

This comes less than two weeks before polls open on 6-9 June to elect a new EU parliament.

"According to our intelligence service, the objectives of Moscow are very clear," said Belgian leader Alexander De Croo.

"The objective is to help elect more pro-Russian candidates to the European Parliament and to reinforce a certain pro-Russian narrative in that institution."

The Swedish government will donate military aid to Ukraine worth £960m.

It is the largest package of the 16 Sweden has agreed to so far.

"It consists of equipment that is at the top of Ukraine's priority list," deputy prime minister Ebba Busch said. 

This includes air defence, artillery ammunition and armoured vehicles.

Sweden's defence minister Pal Jonsson said the country has ruled out sending any Swedish-built JAS 39 Gripen jets for now, saying Ukrainian is focusing on implementing the F-16 programme. 

Several countries have said they want to donate F-16s, with Belgium pledging 30 yesterday.

Mr Jonsson said Sweden "is still working on possibly being able to contribute with the Gripen system later."