The United States and Germany are set to send their most advanced tanks to Ukraine, indicating a broad shift in the mood of Western countries, which had so far avoided sending critical weaponry to Kiev and escalating with Russia.

A Russian official says the United States is encouraging Ukraine to commit terrorist acts against Russia, as Washington signaled it was okay with Kiev hitting Russian-controlled Crimea with Western weapons.

Russia says US assumptions about the possibility of a limited nuclear conflict are “erroneous,” warning that any use of nuclear weapons could result in a global catastrophe.

Russia’s ambassador to Washington says the US authorities persuaded him to denounce his motherland and condemn the Kremlin's military operation in Ukraine.

Russia has castigated the US government for its attempts to recruit staff in the Russian embassy in Washington to work against their government, calling it “unacceptable”.

Russia does not intend to employ nuclear weapons in Ukraine, a Russian official says, rejecting reports by Western media suggesting the possibility of a nuclear strike by Moscow are “deliberate lies.”

The Russian ambassador to the US says the working of Russia’s embassy has been ‘blockaded’ and the staff threatened.