IN DETAIL

• President Vladimir Putin has congratulated Russian forces on victory in the Luhansk region and "liberating" the region after his troops seized the strategic city of Lysychansk. Russian troops have now been ordered to now press their offensive deeper into the eastern Donetsk province, marking a new phase in the five-month long conflict. READ MORE BELOW

• Russian forces are now "massively shelling" the eastern city of Sloviansk, its mayor said, as Moscow attempts to take full control of Donbas. So far, artillery has hit a market and a residential area in Sloviansk, killing at least two people and injuring seven, according to local officials.

• Russia is investigating the alleged torture of Russian prisoners of war released by Ukraine, saying it was "verifying facts of inhuman treatment." The investigation follows last week's exchange of 144 POWs, the largest swap between Moscow and Kyiv since the start of the conflict. 

• American basketball star Brittney Griner has asked U.S. President Joe Biden not to forget her in a handwritten letter from a Russian jail, where she is being held on drug smuggling charges. "As I sit here in a Russian prison, alone with my thoughts and without the protection of my wife, family, friends, Olympic jersey, or any accomplishments, I'm terrified I might be here forever," Griner wrote.

• Russian-imposed authorities in the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region - partly under Russian control - say they have agreed on a deal to sell grain abroad, mainly to the Middle East. Iraq, Iran and Saudi Arabia will be among the buyers, according to the head of the administration of the occupied region, Yevgeny Balitsky. 

• The UN human rights chief has condemned the "senseless war" in Ukraine, demanding an end to the "unbearable" civilian suffering unleashed by the conflict. "In the name of every victim of this senseless war, the killings, the torture, the arbitrary detentions must stop," she said.

• Russian-backed separatists have seized two foreign-flagged ships in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol - now under Russian control - saying they are"state property" in the first such moves against commercial shipping.

• Ukraine and its allies have agreed a set of principles for rebuilding the conflict-stricken country, including the need to stamp out corruption and uphold the rule of law following a meeting in Switzerland. The cost of the task could reach $750 billion, said Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmygal, adding that wealthy frozen Russian assets worth $300-$500 billion should be used to help pay the bill.

• The process to ratify Sweden and Finland as the newest members of NATO has formally got underway, marking a historic step for the formally non-aligned nations. "This is a good day for Finland and Sweden and a good day for NATO," the alliance's chief Jens Stoltenberg said.

• Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu has said that Moscow does not send its new conscripts to fight in Ukraine, despite Western allegations that the Kremlin is sending rookie troops to the Donbas frontline. 

• The U.S. and many of its allies have called for the Russian and Belarusian sporting national governing bodies to be suspended from international federations due to Russia's military campaign in Ukraine.

• The UN has inscribed the culture surrounding beetroot soup known as 'borscht' in Ukraine on its list of endangered cultural heritage, a recognition given extra weight amid the conflict. READ MORE HERE 

IN DETAIL 

How important is Russia's capture of Luhansk?

Russian forces have set their sights on their next objectives in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk province after President Vladimir Putin claimed victory in neighboring Luhansk province, marking a new phase in the conflict.

The capture of the city of Lysychansk on Sunday means Russian forces now control all of Luhansk, one of two regions in Donbas, the industrialized eastern sector of Ukraine that has become the flashpoint of Europe's bloodiest conflict in decades.

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Kyiv and Moscow have suffered heavy casualties in the fight for Luhansk, especially during the siege of Lysychansk and Sievierodonetsk, both of which have been left in ruins by relentless artillery fire.

"The city doesn't exist anymore," said Nina, a young mother who has fled Lysychansk to take refuge in the central city of Dnipro.

"It has practically been wiped off the face of the Earth. Just like many of our houses."

Ukrainian forces have now taken up new defensive lines in Donetsk, where they still control major cities, while Putin told his troops to "absolutely rest and recover their military preparedness" while units in other areas keep fighting.

The towns of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk came under heavy shelling overnight, according to Donetsk governor Pavlo Kyrylenko, who said they were now "the main line of assault for the enemy," adding: "There is no safe place without shelling in Donetsk region."

Since the outset of the conflict, Russia has demanded that Ukraine hand both Luhansk and Donetsk to pro-Moscow separatists, which have declared independent status.

"This is the last victory for Russia on Ukrainian territory," Zelenskyy's advisor Oleksiy Arestovych said, but added Ukraine was hoping to launch counter offensives in the south of the country.

"Taking the cities in the east meant that 60 percent of Russian forces are now concentrated in the east and it is difficult for them to be redirected to the south," he said.

"And there are no more forces that can be brought in from Russia. They paid a big price for Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk." 

Zelenskyy said on Monday that despite Ukraine's withdrawal from Luhansk, its troops continued to fight. 

"The armed forces of Ukraine respond, push back and destroy the offensive potential of the occupiers day after day," the president said in a video message. "We need to break them. It is a difficult task. It requires time and superhuman efforts. But we have no alternative."