Russia-Ukraine war – live: Putin arrives in Belarus to stage nuclear drills as Kyiv strikes occupied Crimea

Vladimir Putin has arrived in Belarus for a two-day visit where he will discuss tactical nuclear exercises with his ally Alexander Lukashenko.

Russia has begun stationing its nuclear weapons inside Belarus, which borders Nato members Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, since its war against Ukraine began.

The Belarus visit is part of a round of foreign tours Putin is conducting as he kicks off his fifth term in office, many of which involve drumming up support for his invasion of Ukraine. He and Lukashenko are expected to speak about the second phase of exercises with tactical nuclear weapons.

“Today and tomorrow we will be discussing all this, including issues of security to which we have devoted considerable attention,” Putin was quoted as saying. “There is a lot to talk about.”

Minsk is set to take part in the exercises, aimed at simulating preparations for the launch of the weapons, which are smaller nuclear warheads meant for use on battlefields.

Putin has just returned from China and is also expected in Uzbekistan on Sunday.

It comes as Kyiv’s forces struck the illegally annexed Crimean peninsula with a barrage of missiles and drones in the past 24 hours. Russia-backed local officials claim the strikes killed two in Simferopol, though there has been no independent confirmation.

The United States is expected to announce an additional $275 million in military aid for Ukraine on Friday as Kyiv struggles to hold off advances by Russian troops in the Kharkiv region, two U.S. officials say.

This will be the fourth installment of military aid for Ukraine since Congress passed a long-delayed foreign aid bill late last month and comes as the Niden administration has pledged to keep weapons flowing regularly and to get them to the