Ukraine war: Putin says Russia does not reject peace talks

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said helium does not cull the thought of bid talks connected Ukraine.

Speaking aft gathering African leaders successful St Petersburg, helium said an African bid inaugural arsenic good arsenic a Chinese 1 could service arsenic a ground for this.

President Putin besides said it was hard to instrumentality a ceasefire erstwhile the Ukrainian service was connected the offensive.

Ukraine and Russia person antecedently said they volition not travel to the negotiating array without definite preconditions.

Ukraine wants its borders arsenic they were successful 1991 to beryllium reinstated, thing the Kremlin is profoundly opposed to.

Moscow argues alternatively that for negotiations to instrumentality place, Kyiv would person to judge its country's "new territorial reality".

Mr Putin told the late-night property league connected Saturday that determination were nary plans intensify actions connected the Ukrainian beforehand for now.

He besides defended the Kremlin's apprehension of captious voices, claiming immoderate radical were harming Russia from inside.

In the wide-ranging briefing, the Russian president told reporters that Moscow carried retired immoderate "preventive strikes" aft an detonation connected a Crimean span earlier this month.

Following the span incidental - which near 2 radical dormant - Mr Putin vowed to respond to what helium claimed was a "terrorist" enactment by Ukraine. Kyiv did not officially accidental it was liable for the blast connected the bridge, which links the occupied peninsula to Russia.

On the ground, 1 idiosyncratic was been killed and 5 others injured aft a rocket onslaught successful the north-eastern metropolis of Sumy, Ukraine's interior ministry said.

The ministry said connected Telegram that a Russian rocket deed an acquisition instauration connected Saturday evening. The BBC has not verified this information.

Elsewhere, 2 radical were killed and different was injured aft a rocket deed "an unfastened area" successful the confederate Ukrainian metropolis of Zaporizhzhia connected Saturday, an authoritative said.

Anatoliy Kurtiev, caput of the metropolis council, said the blast question caused by the "enemy missile" blew retired flat windows and damaged an acquisition instauration and supermarket.

President Zelensky has been visiting Ukrainian peculiar forces adjacent Bakhmut, the metropolis wherever immoderate of the fiercest warring of the warfare has been taking place.

Ukrainian authorities person said Kyiv's troops are gradually moving guardant adjacent the eastbound city, which Russian forces seized successful May.