TOP HEADLINES

• President Vladimir Putin said deployment of tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus was a reminder to the West that it could not inflict a strategic defeat on Russia. MORE BELOW

• Ukrainian forces are advancing in southern sectors of their counter-offensive against Russian occupation troops, Ukrainian military officials said.

• President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said movement in the counter-offensive was the 'most important thing.' He added: "Every soldier, every new step we take, every meter of Ukrainian land freed from the enemy is of utmost importance."

• Russia will take into account the "behavior" of Western media and attitude to Russian reporters abroad when deciding whether to accredit their journalists for major forums in Russia, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

• Russian air defense units repelled a Ukrainian attack overnight on a pumping station on the Druzhba oil pipeline in the Bryansk region adjoining Ukraine, the region's governor said.

• Zelenskyy said during a visit of African leaders to Kyiv on Friday that he wanted to hold a Ukraine-Africa summit, and for Kyiv to step up its relations with the continent.

• It is unclear whether water from the huge reservoir of the Kakhovka dam in Ukraine that burst last week can still be pumped to the nearby Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant for cooling, said the UN nuclear watchdog.

• After the visit to Kyiv on Friday, South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa said he will now have a bilateral meeting with Russia's President Vladimir Putin on Saturday to discuss the BRICS summit.

• Ramaphosa said international investigations on alleged abuses in the Ukrainian city of Bucha should be allowed to go on, and that it was important to listen to what Russia and Ukraine had to say.

• Zambia's President Hakainde Hichilema said it was important for the continent of Africa to contribute to peace in Ukraine, after a meeting with between African leaders and Zelenskyy in Kyiv.

IN DETAIL

Nuclear weapons a warning to the West - Putin

President Vladimir Putin confirmed the first batch of tactical nuclear weapons had been deployed to Belarus, stating they they were a reminder to the West that it could not inflict a strategic defeat on Russia.

Speaking at Russia's economic forum in St Petersburg, Putin said Russian tactical nuclear warheads had already been delivered to their close ally, but stressed he saw no need for Russia to resort to nuclear weapons for now.

"It is precisely as an element of deterrence so that all those who are thinking about inflicting a strategic defeat on us are not oblivious to this circumstance," said Putin, using a diplomatic term for a defeat so severe that Russian power would be diminished on the world stage for decades.

The Russian leader announced in March he had agreed to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, pointing to the U.S deployment of such weapons in a host of European countries.

The U.S. has criticized Putin's decision but has said it has no intention of altering its own stance on strategic nuclear weapons and has not seen any signs that Russia is preparing to use nuclear force.

"Nuclear weapons have been made to ensure our security in the broadest sense of the word and the existence of the Russian state, but we have no such need (to use them)," Putin added.

But he said talks with the West to reduce Russia's vast nuclear arsenal, the world's largest, were a non-starter.

"Just talking about this (the potential use of nuclear weapons) lowers the nuclear threshold. We have more than NATO countries and they want to reduce our numbers. Screw them," said Putin.

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