Since a Russian court in January sent his older brother, environmental activist Fail Alsynov, to prison for four years, Idel says he has lived in "fear of the unknown".

Putin will be in Beijing from Thursday to Friday, foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said, in the Russian leader's second visit to China in just over six months.

Georgia was set to adopt a "foreign influence" bill on Tuesday despite mass protests against a law criticised for mirroring repressive Russian legislation.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived Tuesday in Kyiv on an unannounced visit to assure Ukraine of continued American support and the flow of much-needed weapons as Russia presses on with its new offensive in the northeastern Kharkiv region.

President Vladimir Putin's nomination of top economic official Andrei Belousov as defence minister is a sign of the importance the Russian leader places on the war economy in gaining the upper hand in what he expects will be a long conflict against Ukraine, analysts say.

Russia pounded over 30 villages and towns in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region after launching a ground offensive in the border region, forcing almost 6,000 to evacuate, the governor said on Monday.

Chinese banks are tightening scrutiny over trade with Russia for fear of incurring strict new US sanctions over the Ukraine war, testing the "no limits" friendship between the two countries.

Putin proposed economist Andrey Belousov as Shoigu's replacement, according to a list of the ministerial nominations published by the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament.

Sergei Shoigu, who is being replaced as Russia's defence minister, spearheaded Moscow's offensive in Ukraine and has been the country's longest-serving minister, as well as being one of Vladimir Putin's few close friends.

Lyuda Zelenskaya and Liuba Konovalova, both in their 70s, held each other through "terrifying" Russian attacks on their village near Vovchansk in Ukraine's Kharkiv region, where Russia launched a surprise ground offensive.

Thousands of people been evacuated from border areas in Ukraine's Kharkiv region, as Russia kept up constant strikes on a key town as part of a cross-border offensive, officials said Sunday.

Lithuania votes Sunday in a presidential election dominated by security concerns with the main candidates all agreed the NATO and EU member should boost defence spending to counter the perceived threat from neighbouring Russia.

Eurovision fans gathered in Tel Aviv Saturday to watch the show taking place in Sweden on big screens said they were hoping voters would finally show Israel some love.

Thousands of protesters marched through central Tbilisi on Saturday at a rally against a controversial "foreign influence" bill backed by the Georgian government and likened to Russian laws silencing dissent.

More than 2,800 people have been arrested or detained on campuses across the country.

The Eurovision Song Contest final gets underway in Sweden's Malmo on Saturday with thousands of protesters expected to culminate a week of tensions surrounding Israel's participation during the Gaza war.

Hundreds of people were evacuated from areas near the Russian border in Ukraine's Kharkiv region, the regional governor said Saturday, a day after Moscow launched a surprise ground offensive.

North Korea will equip its military with a new 240mm multiple rocket launcher starting this year, state media said Saturday, adding a "significant change" for the army's artillery combat capabilities was under way.

The United States on Friday announced a new $400 million military aid package for Kyiv as Russia launched a ground offensive in northeast Ukraine.

In a cathedral in the central Ukrainian city of Vinnytsya in front of hundreds of mourners, Nazary Gryntsevych's mother and girlfriend rested their heads on the side of his open coffin.

As Chinese President Xi Jinping wraps up his European tour with his stop in Budapest, analysts say the Chinese leader made an impression but no real breakthroughs on trade and Ukraine tensions.

Russia launched a cross-border ground offensive into Ukraine's northeast Kharkiv region and civilians were being evacuated amid the fighting, Ukrainian officials said Friday.

Georgia's ambassador to France, who has resigned over a bill criticised for mirroring repressive Russian legislation, called for the draft law to be dropped on Friday.

Gross domestic product expanded 0.6 percent in the first three months of this year, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, noting strong growth in service industries and car manufacturing.

A federal appeals court panel in Philadelphia rejected Hunter Biden's plea deal and claims of "political bias" in his gun case, clearing the way for a trial next month.

In the heart of Cotonou's large Dantokpa market, Diane Makpenon's family corn shop is less busy than usual these days.

His legacy forever defined by Brexit, Britain's former prime minister David Cameron is hurriedly restoring his reputation -- and that of UK diplomacy -- as a globe-trotting foreign secretary.

Israel qualified for this weekend's Eurovision song contest grand finale, defying thousands of demonstrators marching on Thursday in host country Sweden over the Gaza war.

Thousands of demonstrators, including climate activist Greta Thunberg, marched through the streets of Sweden's Malmo on Thursday to protest against Israel's participation in Eurovision, an AFP journalist observed.

The Olympic torch relay began in Marseille on Thursday with the port city's football legend Basile Boli taking the flame in front of the iconic basilica of Notre-Dame de la Garde before passing it on to a number of other celebrity sports stars including Ukrainian gymnast Mariia Vysochanska.