Five events as Putin and UN chief “prepare to hold talks in Moscow”

Good evening. The Kremlin said on Friday that Vladimir Putin would hold a face-to-face meeting with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres next week.

As an indication of a significant expansion of its military objectives, Moscow is now seeking to occupy all of southern Ukraine, as well as take over Donbass to the east, a senior Russian commander said on Friday.

Here are the main developments from this afternoon – follow our live blog for more updates.

1. Putin will meet with the UN chief, the Kremlin says

Russian leader Vladimir Putin will meet with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the Kremlin said.

The two are expected to hold talks in the capital, Moscow, next week.

“On Tuesday, April 26, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will arrive in Moscow for talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the state news agency RIA Novosti.

“He will also be received by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

This comes after the Secretary-General’s calls earlier this week for a four-day humanitarian break on Holy Week went unanswered.

Guterres said the pause would allow a series of humanitarian corridors to open.

2. Russia puts the whole of southern Ukraine in its field of vision