Ukraine

The Russian president said the West needs to facilitate Moscow’s own agricultural exports before he will join a pact that guaranteed security for Kyiv’s Black Sea exports.

• Russia's diplomats were once a key part of President Putin's foreign policy strategy. But that has all changed. 
• In the years leading up to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, diplomats lost their authority, their role reduced to echoing the Kremlin's aggressive rhetoric. 
• BBC Russian asks former Western diplomats, as well as ex-Kremlin and White House insiders, how Russian diplomacy broke down.

The death of a renowned fighter jet pilot marks a “terrible” day for Ukraine as it tries to tip the balance against Russia.