TOP HEADLINES

The Kremlin has called a video appearing to show the beheading of a captured Ukrainian solider "awful" but says its authenticity still needs to be checked. Ukraine has asked for the International Criminal Court to investigate.

Interfax News Agency reports that Russia says its forces have struck Ukrainian army reserves as they try to break through to the besieged city of Bahkmut.

Ukraine's military says a Russian claim that it has captured more than 80 percent of the city of Bakhmut is untrue. Kyiv says its forces control considerably more than 20 percent of the small city in eastern Donetsk which has seen some of the fiercest fighting of the conflict.

Ukraine's defense minister says the alleged leak of U.S. defence documents contains a mixture of true and false information about Kyiv's military. He also dismissed as "not true" suggestions in the Pentagon leaks that NATO special forces were operating inside Ukraine.

Russia has suggested that the U.S. intelligence documents posted online in recent weeks might be a deliberate attempt to mislead Moscow. The documents have not been verified but are said to include what looks like U.S. assessments of the conflict in Ukraine. 

The Kremlin says the outlook for the U.N. brokered Black Sea grain deal is 'not great.' The agreement was first signed in July 2022 and has twice been extended and Moscow says the latest agreement is due to expire on May 18.

IN DETAIL

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov says he believes the alleged Pentagon leaks are a psychological information operation to benefit Russia and its allies.

Papers that are allegedly highly classified U.S. military documents have appeared online and include what appears to be details on Ukraine's air defences.

Kyiv says they contain a mixture of true and false information and that any true information is no longer relevant. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov says the documents might be fake and a deliberate attempt to mislead Moscow.

Reuters also reported that the documents claim Serbia – which has professed neutrality in the conflict and refused to sanction Russia - agreed to supply arms to Kyiv or has sent them already. Serbia's Defence Minister says the assertions are "untrue."

Some national security experts say they suspect that the leaker could be American, but there is also speculation the leaker could be pro-Russian.

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